Since 1917, The Pulitzer Prize has honored some of the best writing in America. Established at Columbia University by Joseph Pulitzer, the winners are presented annually each spring. The award spans across 23 categories, including journalism, books, drama, and music.
Books are further broken down into categories — Fiction, General Nonfiction, History, Biography, Poetry, and Memoir or Autobiography — with one, or sometimes two, winners in each category. This year's winners include a reimagining of a classic novel, an examination of what freedom has historically meant in America, a biography of a man who incited a worldwide conversation around racial equity, and a coming of age memoir, among others. If you're searching for a groundbreaking new read, here are the 2023 Pulitzer Prize winners and finalists for books.
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Winner: FictionA young boy born into poverty in Appalachia braves a journey against societal woes in this reimagining of Charles Dickens’ “David Copperfield.” -
Winner: FictionWealth in the 1920s reveled in excess and immense power, but at what cost? This novel spans multiple narratives in its examination of the complications of privilege.
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Finalist: FictionA complex legacy left behind by the tech CEO King Rao leaves his daughter Athena to discover a way forward against a corporate-led government in a dystopian world facing the ravages of climate change.
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Winner: PoetryThis collection centers on the struggles of American culture in a time of socio-political conflict, reflecting on how forces like human connection, revolution, and community can intersect.
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Finalist: PoetryChronicling the stories of an ancient Arctic culture against forces of erasure and environmental change, the poems in “Blood Snow” speak to the topics of homeland, nature, and identity.
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Finalist: PoetryFacing a terminal cancer diagnosis, Hopler turned to poetry. The late author penned this collection in a search for meaning and to face fears, both real and imagined.
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Winner: Memoir or AutobiographyThis coming of age memoir centers around Hsu’s sudden loss of a childhood friend, growing up, and finding a sense of belonging.
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Finalist: Memoir or AutobiographyWeaving together memories and observations, Jones deftly explores the world’s typical standards of beauty as a disabled person, mother, traveler, and philosophy professor.
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Finalist: Memoir or AutobiographyRojas Contreras goes on a journey to relearn her magical family history in Columbia after a bout of amnesia in this engaging memoir spanning generations.
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Winner: HistoryIn this account of Alabama in the 19th and 20th centuries, Cowie lays bare the historical weaponization of freedom: white Americans’ fighting the federal government to maintain their freedom to oppress others.
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Finalist: HistoryAmidst the plunder and pressures of white settlement, this analysis of Native persistence in the Old Northwest challenges the assumptions of American expansion.
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Finalist: HistoryAn award-winning journalist recounts all the chaotic and unbelievable details of the well-known political crisis in this comprehensive book.
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Winner: BiographyThe polarizing FBI director is examined with a close lens in this nuanced portrait of J. Edgar Hoover and his influence on governance and political culture in the 20th century.
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Finalist: BiographyDance critic and former dancer Homans covers a long history of the iconic choreographer George Balanchine and his reinvention of the art of ballet.
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Winner: General Nonfiction; Finalist: BiographyGarnering both a win and finalist spot, this book delves into the life and humanity of the man whose unjust murder at the hand of police ignited a global movement for social change.
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Finalist: General NonfictionLanguage begets communication, and this account of how Mandarin was reinvented provides insights into language’s part in China’s influence in trade and technology.
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Finalist: General NonfictionFrom birdsong to the roar of city traffic, Haskell examines how the beauty and brokenness of sound impacts the modern world.
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Finalist: General NonfictionFollowing Villarosa’s landmark 2018 NYT article on the same subject matter, this exposé breaks down the link between racial discrimination and the health of Black Americans through several studies and analyses.
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