2023 PEN/Faulkner Finalists Announced

The award is for the best American author published in 2022.

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The PEN/Faulkner Award is a prestigious peer-reviewed prize and is considered to be a “first among equals” award. This year’s judges, all notable authors, narrowed over 500 eligible books down to just five. The winner will be announced on May 11th.

The nominees are:

• If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery - This one has been on my TBR for a long time, nominated for other things, and recommended by a friend.

• Fruiting Bodies by Kathryn Harlan - A short story collection, supposedly with a theme of knowledge in a world on the verge of collapse.

• The Islands by Dionne Irving - Another short story collection, this one about Jamaican women and themes of colonialism and race.

• The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li - A tale of two girls in post-WWII France, and their diverging tales from Paris to America.

• Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm by Laura Warrell - A novel about a trumpet player, his daughter, and unrequited love.