Washington State Book Awards Announce 2026 Finalists

The Washington Center for the Book has announced this year’s finalists for the 2026 Washington State Book Awards, which recognize works published by Washington residents in 2025.

A total of 308 books were considered for this year’s awards. Forty-one finalists were ultimately selected across seven categories. Winners will be announced Sept. 15.

Here is the full list of finalists, according to a Washington Center for the Book release:

Creative Nonfiction/Memoir

“Alterations” by Cori Winrock of Bellingham”Authentic: The Myth of Bringing Your Full Self to Work” by Jodi-Ann Burey of Seattle”Deciding to See: The View from Nathan’s Bus” By Nathan Vass of Seattle”My Animal Kingdom” By Rebecca Brown of Seattle”Positively Uncivilized” by Rena Priest of Bellingham”We Survived the Night” by Julian Brave NoiseCat of Bremerton

Fiction

“Dungeon Crawler Carl” by Matt Dinniman of Gig Harbor”Intemperance” by Sonora Jha of Seattle”The Possession of Alba Díaz” by Isabel Cañas of Seattle”Sinkhole, and Other Inexplicable Voids” by Leyna Krow of Spokane”So Far Gone” by Jess Walter of Spokane”When We Were Real” by Daryl Greagory of Seattle

General Nonfiction/Biography

“The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want” by Emily M. Bender of Seattle and Alex Hanna”Black Gold: The Rise, Reign, and Fall of American Coal” by Bob Wyss of West Seattle”Close to Home: The Wonders of Nature Just Outside Your Door” by Thor Hanson of San Juan Island”A Dumb Birds Field Guide to the Worst Birds Ever” by Matt Kracht of Tacoma”Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution” by Cat Bohannon of Seattle”Wards of the State: The Long Shadow of American Foster Care” by Claudia Rowe of Seattle

Poetry

“Cold Thief Place” by Esther Lin of Seattle”Forty Bouts in the Wilderness” by Katy E. Ellis of Vashon”I’ve Never Loved Somebody and Made Them Worse” by Mia Nelson of Seattle”Let the Moon Wobble” by Ally Ang of Seattle”Recovery Commands” by Abby E. Murray of Tacoma”Shiny City” by Ching-In Chen of Lake Forest Park

Picture Books

“Are You a Friend of Dorothy?: The True Story of an Imaginary Woman and the Real People She Helped” by Kyle Lukoff, illustrated by Levi Hastings of Seattle”Blue” by Suzanne Kaufman of Seattle”Cranky, Crabby Crow (Saves the World)” by Corey R. Tabor of Tacoma”Fierce Aunties!” by Laurel Goodluck, illustrated by Steph Littlebird of Vancouver”A Gift of Dust: How Saharan Plumes Feed the Planet” by Martha Brockenbrough of Seattle, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal”Poo Pile on the Prarie” by Amy Hevron of Seattle

Books for Young Readers

“Busted” by Dan Gemeinhart of Cashmere”Jazzy the Witch in Broom Doom” by Jessixa Bagley of Seattle”Rabbit Rabbit” by Dori Hillestad Butler of Seattle and Sunshine Bacon of Seattle”Unlikely Aventuras of Ramón and El Cucuy” by Donna Barba Higuera of Poulsbo, illustrated by Juliana Perdomo”Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest for Kids” by Ashley Erdely of White Salmon”XOLO” by Donna Barba Higuera of Poulsbo, illustrated by Mariana Ruiz Johnson

Young Adult Lit

“Bingsu for Two” by Sujin Witherspoon of Seattle”Climate of Chaos” by Cassandra Newbould of Camano Island”Eve (Adapted for Young Adults): How the Female Body Shaped Human Evolution” by Cat Bohannon of Seattle”King of the Neuro Verse” by Idris Goodwin of Seattle”On the Wings of la Noche” by Vanessa L. Torres of Olympia

Submissions are now open for books published in 2026. Find guidelines here.