September 17, 2020, 4:27pm
Today, the New York Public Library announced the winner for this year’s Young Lions Fiction Award. The award—founded in 2001 by Ethan Hawke, Hannah McFarland, Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, and Rick Moody—was created to honor a writer age 35 or younger for a novel or collection of short stories. The prize comes with $10,000. Previous winners include Ling Ma, Karan Mahajan, and Lesley Nneka Arimah.
This year, the winner, chosen from an amazing shortlist, is Bryan Washington’s Lot. The novel has been praised as “audacious” and “stunning,” with Obama naming it one of his favorite books of the year.
You can find the video announcement of the winner, along with each of the finalists’ reading list here.
