Here’s the rundown of this year’s nominees and winners for some of the biggest literary prizes and awards:
International Prizes
Canadian Prizes
American Prizes
British Prizes
INTERNATIONAL
The Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to 113 Nobel Laureates since 1901. Click on the links to get more information.
- The Nobel Prize for Literature for 2017 has not yet been awarded.
To view a list of past winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature, go here.
The Man Booker Prize promotes the finest in fiction by rewarding the very best book of the year. The prize is the world’s most important literary award and has the power to transform the fortunes of authors and publishers.
Longlist:
- 4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster (US) (Faber & Faber)
- Days Without End by Sebastian Barry (Ireland) (Faber & Faber)
- History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund (US) (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
- Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (Pakistan-UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
- Solar Bones by Mike McCormack (Ireland) (Canongate)
- Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor (UK) (4th Estate)
- Elmet by Fiona Mozley (UK) (JM Originals)
- The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy (India) (Hamish Hamilton)
- Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (US) (Bloomsbury)
- Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie (UK-Pakistan) (Bloomsbury)
- Autumn by Ali Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
- Swing Time by Zadie Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
- The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (US) (Fleet)
Important dates:
- The shortlist will be announced on September 13, 2017
- The winner will be announced on October 17, 2017
To view a list of past winners, go here.
CANADIAN
The Giller Prize was founded in 1994 by Jack Rabinovitch in honour of his late wife, literary journalist Doris Giller, who passed away from cancer the year before. The award recognized excellence in Canadian fiction – long format or short stories – and endowed a cash prize annually of $25,000.00, the largest purse for literature in the country.
- Longlist announced September 18, 2017
- Shortlist announced October 2, 2017
- The 2017 Scotiabank Giller Prize winner will be announced November 20, 2017.
For more Canadian literature of the season, check out Crazy for CanLit.
Governor General’s Literary Awards
As Canada’s national literary awards, the GGs represent the rich diversity of Canadian literature. Some 1,600 books are submitted each year from English and French-language publishers representing authors, translators and illustrators from across Canada, in seven categories.
- #GGbooks contest September 28, 2015
- Finalists announced October 7, 2015
- Winners announcement October 28, 2015
Search submitted titles here.
More information on the awards and countdown to next event can be found here.
Michael Ondaatje. Carol Shields. George Bowering. Robert Munsch. Susan Musgrave. Leon Rooke. Gail Anderson-Dargatz. Since 1979, the CBC Literary Prizes have recognized Canada’s brightest literary stars on the rise.
CBC Short Story Prize | CBC Creative Non-Fiction Prize | CBC Poetry Prize
The BC Book Prizes, established in 1985, celebrate the achievements of British Columbia writers and publishers. The seven Prizes are presented annually at the Lieutenant Governor’s BC Book Prizes Gala in the spring, with the winner of The Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence being announced beforehand at the annual BC Book Prizes Soirée.
See a full list of winners and finalists here.
AMERICAN
The National Book Award is one of the nation’s most prestigious literary prizes and has a stellar record of identifying and rewarding quality writing. In 1950, William Carlos Williams was the first Winner in Poetry, the following year William Faulkner was honored in Fiction, and so on through the years. Many previous Winners of the National Book Award are now firmly established in the canon of American literature, such as Sherman Alexie, Louise Erdrich, Jonathan Franzen, Denis Johnson, Joyce Carol Oates, and Adrienne Rich.
The National Book Award Finalists will be announced on October 14th; Winners will be announced at a gala dinner and ceremony in New York on November 18th. For more information on the Awards and a list of this year’s judges, visit www.nationalbook.org.
- Longlist announced September 12-16, 2017
- Finalists announced October 4, 2017
- Winner announced November 15, 2017
BRITISH
BAILEYS Women’s Prize for Fiction
One of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, the BAILEYS Women’s Prize for Fiction – previously known as the Orange Prize for Fiction – celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in women’s writing from throughout the world.
Longlist:
- Midwinter – Fiona Melrose
- The Sport of Kings – C.E. Morgan
- The Woman Next Door – Yewande Omotoso
- The Lonely Hearts Hotel – Heather O’Neill
- The Essex Serpent – Sarah Perry
- Barkskins – Annie Proulx
- First Love – Gwendoline Riley
- Do Not Say We Have Nothing – Madeleine Thien
- The Gustav Sonata – Rose Tremain
- Stay With Me – Ayobami Adebayo
- The Power – Naomi Alderman
- Hag-Seed – Margaret Atwood
- Little Deaths – Emma Flint
- The Mare – Mary Gaitskill
- The Dark Circle – Linda Grant
- The Lesser Bohemians – Eimear McBride
Shortlist:
- The Sport of Kings – C.E. Morgan
- First Love – Gwendoline Riley
- Do Not Say We Have Nothing – Madeleine Thien
- Stay With Me – Ayobami Adebayo
- The Power – Naomi Alderman
- The Dark Circle – Linda Grant
Winner:
The Power – Naomi Alderman
The Desmond Elliott Prize is an annual award for a first novel written in English and published in the UK. Worth ÂŁ10,000 to the winner, the prize is named after the literary agent and publisher, Desmond Elliott.
Longlist:
- Harmless Like You – Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
- My Name Is Leon – Kit De Waal
- Little Dreams – Emma Flint
- Montpelier Parade – Karl Geary
- The Transition – Luke Kennard
- Ithaca – Alan McMonagle
- The Sacred Combe – Thomas Maloney
- They Are Trying To Break Your Heart – David Savill
- Golden Hill – Francis Spufford
- Forbidden Line – Paul Stanbridge
Shortlist:
- Harmless Like You – Rowan Hisayo Buchanan
- My Name Is Leon – Kit De Waal
- Golden Hill – Francis Spufford
Winner:
Golden Hill – Francis Spufford
The National Book Awards showcases the best of British writing & publishing, whilst celebrating books with wide popular appeal, critical acclaim and commercial success. There are 11 categories. The awards are run by Cactus TV Ltd with developmental help from a cross-industry steering group.
The International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award
The Award is given annually. The prize of €100,000 is awarded to the author of the winning book. However, if the winning book is in English translation, €75,000 is awarded to the author and €25,000 to the translator.
The Folio Prize is open to all works of fiction written in English and published in the UK. All genres and all forms of fiction are eligible. The format of first publication may be print or digital.
The Prize will be awarded in March for books published in the previous calendar year.
David Cohen Prize for Literature
Awarded biennially, this £40,000 prize recognises a lifetime’s achievement in literature, honouring a writer in the English language who is a citizen of the UK or the Republic of Ireland. The winner of the prize is nominated and selected by a panel of judges comprising authors, literary critics and academics. No shortlist is announced. The John S. Cohen Foundation finances the prize and the Arts Council England provides a further £12,500 for the Clarissa Luard Award, which the winner of the David Cohen Prize awards to a literature organisation that supports young writers or an individual writer under the age of 35. Founded 1991. (source)
The Costa Book Awards is one of the UK’s most prestigious and popular literary prizes and recognises some of the most enjoyable books of the year, written by authors based in the UK and Ireland.
Since their launch in 1971, the awards have rewarded a wide range of excellent books and authors across all genres.
Uniquely, the prize has five categories – First Novel, Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children’s Book – with one of the five winning books selected as the overall Costa Book of the Year. It is the only prize which places children’s books alongside adult books in this way.
- Category shortlists announced November 21, 2017
- Category winners announced January 2, 2018
- Costa book of the year announced January 30, 2018
Launched in 2006, the annual International Dylan Thomas Prize is one of the most prestigious awards for young writers, aimed at encouraging raw creative talent worldwide. It celebrates and nurtures international literary excellence.
