Poetry judge Natalie Diaz said, “These poems have a lexicon and language all their own. They build each body—body of person, body of land or sea—with a precision and a sensuality that comes from understanding there are more than five senses. A reader is given the gift of feeling the silences, the touches, the strengths…
In fiction, our winner is Lydia Martín for her story “The Adjustment Act.” The fiction judge, Anthony Marra, writes, “‘The Adjustment Act’ is a flat-out triumph: richly characterized, gorgeously rendered, deeply humane. Aside from the author’s obvious talents, I was moved and impressed by the story’s focus on the humanitarian price of ideological conviction. Politics,…
In nonfiction, our winner is Mimi Dixon for her essay “Breath.” The nonfiction judge, Dinty W. Moore, writes that “Breath” is “an exquisite memoir essay filled with gorgeous detail, breath, music, wisdom, and surprise. Though I never met the author’s father, by the end of this graceful, intimate essay I, too, miss his presence in…
In poetry, our winner is Leila Chatti for her poem “Confession.” The poetry judge, Marianne Boruch, writes of “Confession,” “It’s the first I’ve heard of anyone having an honest-to-god point-of-view about Mary whom many of us grew up numbly staring at on a holy card, buying her pious gratitude whole-cloth, and mouthing each repeated prayer…
In poetry, our winner is Emily Jungmin Yoon for two poems entitled “An Ordinary Misfortune.” Matthew Lippman, the poetry judge, writes about the winning poems: “They continue to resonate long after my reading of them. I love the lyrical quality to the verse. I love how she speaks so powerfully about identity (historical and present)…
In poetry, our winner is Emily Jungmin Yoon for two poems entitled “An Ordinary Misfortune.” Matthew Lippman, the poetry judge, writes about the winning poems: “They continue to resonate long after my reading of them. I love the lyrical quality to the verse. I love how she speaks so powerfully about identity (historical and present)…
In fiction, our winner is Lucy Tan for her story “Safety of Numbers.” This year’s fiction judge, Megan Mayhew Bergman, writes: “‘Safety of Numbers’ stood out to me as a confident and ultimately believable piece of short fiction, one with solid, gimmick-free writing that took up space beyond its page count. There was a real…
In nonfiction, our winner is Emily Strasser for her essay “Homeplace.” The nonfiction judge, Jabari Asim, writes: “In ‘Homeplace,’ Emily Strasser investigates family history and the remnants of a community transformed by our government’s covert development of nuclear weaponry. With careful scrutiny she sifts through long-simmering secrets, exposing the large and small costs of a…
In poetry, our winner is Rosalie Moffett, for her poems, “Why Is It the More,” “To Leave Through a Wall,” and “Hurricane, 1989.” Ploughshares’ poetry editor, John Skoyles, writes: “Rosalie Moffett’s poems are thoughtful and wise, dramatic and stunning in their perceptions. She handles huge issues (God’s place in the universe; a lost twin;…
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