Current and historical winners of the PEN/Bellwether Prize, with links to further information at BookBrowse.

PEN/Bellwether Prize

The PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, formerly known as the Bellwether Prize for Fiction is a biennial award given by PEN America and Barbara Kingsolver to a U.S. citizen for a previously unpublished work of fiction that address issues of social justice. The award is given for a work in progress - hence the award date is often at least a year ahead of publication.

The 2023 winner is Kingdom of No Tomorrow by Fabienne Josaphat; publication date to be announced.

Current and Previous Award Winners:

• 2021
• 2019
• 2016
• 2014
• 2012
• 2010
• 2008
• 2006
• 2004
• 2002
• 2000

• 2021

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Moonrise Over New Jessup  by  Jamila Minnicks

• 2019

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  At the Edge of the Haight  by  Katherine Seligman

• 2016

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  The Leavers  by  Lisa Ko

• 2014

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  And West Is West  by  Ron Childress

• 2012

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Good Kings Bad Kings  by  Susan Nussbaum

• 2010

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Running the Rift  by  Naomi Benaron

• 2008

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  The Girl Who Fell from the Sky  by  Heidi W. Durrow

• 2006

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Mudbound  by  Hillary Jordan

• 2004

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Correcting the Landscape  by  Marjorie Kowalski Cole

• 2002

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  The Book of Dead Birds  by  Gayle Brandeis

• 2000

  
  PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction:
  Kissing the Virgin's Mouth  by  Donna M Gershten