Center for Fiction First Novel Prize

The Center for Fiction's First Novel Prize is an annual award presented by The Center for Fiction, a non-profit organization in New York City, for the best debut novel. From 2006 to 2011, it was called the John Sargent, Sr. First Novel Prize in honor of John Turner Sargent, Sr., and, from 2011 to 2014, the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, named after Center for Fiction board member Nancy Dunnan and her journalist father Ray W. Flaherty.

Publishers nominate English-language works by first-time United States novelists. There is a two-tiered selection process for the prize. First, the nominees are read by a network of booklovers (referred to as Common Readers), including librarians, writers, staff, members, and friends of The Center for Fiction, giving rise to a long list of recommended books. Next, the Common Readers' long list is forwarded to a committee of distinguished American writers, who select a short list, typically comprising five to seven titles, which is publicly announced in the late summer. All finalists are invited to read from their works at a First Novel Fête, and the winning novel is then announced at an awards event—both events usually occurring in December. The winning novelist receives a cash prize of $10,000; each finalist receives $1,000.

Recipients

First Novel Prize winners and nominees
Year Author Title Result Ref.
2006 Marisha Pessl Special Topics in Calamity Physics Winner
Marie Arana Cellophane Shortlist
Nell Freudenberger The Dissident
Peter Orner The Second Coming of Mavala Shikongo
Patrick Ryan Send Me
2007 Junot Díaz The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Winner
Daniel Alarcón Lost City Radio Shortlist
Mischa Berlinski Fieldwork
Jon Clinch Finn
Nathan Englander The Ministry of Special Cases
Austin Grossman Soon I Will Be Invincible
Ehud Havazelet Bearing the Body
2008 Hannah Tinti The Good Thief Winner
Stefan Merrill Block The Story of Forgetting Shortlist
Rivka Galchen Atmospheric Disturbances
Beth Helms Dervishes
Peter Manseau Songs for the Butcher's Daughter
Ed Park Personal Days
David Wroblewski The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
2009 John Pipkin Woodsburner Winner
Paul Harding Tinkers Shortlist
Yiyun Li The Vagrants
Philipp Meyer American Rust
Patrick Somerville The Cradle
2010 Karl Marlantes Matterhorn Winner
Michelle Hoover The Quickening Shortlist
Jessica Francis Kane The Report
Maaza Mengiste Beneath the Lion's Gaze
Julie Orringer The Invisible Bridge
Drew Perry This Is Just Exactly Like You
Adam Ross Mr. Peanut
2011 Bonnie Nadzam Lamb Winner
Sarah Braunstein The Sweet Relief of Missing Children Shortlist
Carolyn Cooke Daughters of the Revolution
Ida Hattemer-Higgins The History of History
Ismet Prcic Shards
David Vann Caribou Island
Alexi Zentner Touch
2012 Ben Fountain Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk Winner
Patrick Flanery Absolution Shortlist
Tupelo Hassman Girlchild
Peter Heller The Dog Stars
Eowyn Ivey The Snow Child
Kevin Powers The Yellow Birds
Maggie Shipstead Seating Arrangements
G. Willow Wilson Alif the Unseen
2013 Margaret Wrinkle Wash Winner
Lea Carpenter Eleven Days Shortlist
Marjorie Celona Y
Christopher Hacker The Morels
Mitchell S. Jackson The Residue Years
Anthony Marra A Constellation of Vital Phenomena
Kirstin Scott Motherlunge
Taiye Selasi Ghana Must Go
2014 Tiphanie Yanique Land of Love and Drowning Winner
Rene Denfeld The Enchanted Shortlist
Smith Henderson Fourth of July Creek
Vanessa Manko The Invention of Exile
Matthew Thomas We Are Not Ourselves
Ted Thompson The Land of Steady Habits
Josh Weil The Great Glass Sea
2015 Viet Thanh Nguyen The Sympathizer Winner
Angela Flournoy The Turner House Shortlist
Tanwi Nandini Islam Bright Lines
Sophie McManus The Unfortunates
Ben Metcalf Against the Country
Chigozie Obioma The Fishermen
Lori Ostlund After the Parade
2016 Kia Corthron The Castle Cross the Magnet Carter Winner
Emma Cline The Girls Shortlist
Nicole Dennis-Benn Here Comes the Sun
Kaitlyn Greenidge We Love You, Charlie Freeman
Garth Greenwell What Belongs to You
Yaa Gyasi Homegoing
Krys Lee How I Became a North Korean
2017 Julie Lekstrom Himes Mikhail and Margarita Winner
Bethany Ball What to Do About the Solomons Shortlist
Jaroslav Kalfař Spaceman of Bohemia
Annabelle Kim Tiger Pelt
Simeon Marsalis As Lie Is to Grin
Susan Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday
Kaitlin Solimine Empire of Glass
2018 Tommy Orange There There Winner
Jen Beagin Pretend I'm Dead Shortlist
Akwaeke Emezi Freshwater
Lisa Halliday Asymmetry
Tadzio Koelb Trenton Makes
Jordy Rosenberg Confessions of the Fox
Nafkote Tamirat The Parking Lot Attendant
2019 De'Shawn Charles Winslow In West Mills Winner
Chia-Chia Lin The Unpassing Shortlist
Julia Phillips Disappearing Earth
Pitchaya Sudbanthad Bangkok Wakes to Rain
Ocean Vuong On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
Joe Wilkins Fall Back Down When I Die
Lauren Wilkinson American Spy
2020 Raven Leilani Luster Winner
Amina Cain Indelicacy Shortlist
Maisy Card These Ghosts Are Family
Hilary Leichter Temporary
Corey Sobel The Redshirt
Douglas Stuart Shuggie Bain
C Pam Zhang How Much of These Hills Is Gold
2021 Kirstin Valdez Quade The Five Wounds Winner
Priyanka Champaneri The City of Good Death Shortlist
Linda Rui Feng Swimming Back to Trout River
Honorée Fanonne Jeffers The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois
Violet Kupersmith Build Your House Around My Body
Patricia Lockwood No One Is Talking About This
Jackie Polzin Brood
2022 Noor Naga If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English Winner
Daphne Palasi Andreades Brown Girls Shortlist
Jessamine Chan The School for Good Mothers
Isabel Kaplan NSFW
Alyssa Songsiridej Little Rabbit
Mecca Jamilah Sullivan Big Girl
Vauhini Vara The Immortal King Rao
2023 Tyriek White We Are a Haunting Winner
Elizabeth Acevedo Family Lore Shortlist
Christine Byl Lookout
Eskor David Johnson Pay as You Go
Jamila Minnicks Moonrise Over New Jessup
Tracey Rose Peyton Night Wherever We Go
Esther Yi Y/N

See also