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    Here’s the shortlist for the 2025 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction.

    Literary Hub

    June 18, 2025, 11:35am

    Ursula K. Le Guin Foundation has announced the shortlist for the 2025 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction, which awards $25,000 each year to the author of a book who best represents the legendary writer’s literary, moral, and aesthetic ideals: “realists of a larger reality, who can imagine real grounds for hope and see alternatives to how we live now.”

    The eight books on the shortlist were chosen by the Foundation after a public voting process; the recipient of this year’s prize will be chosen by a panel consisting of authors Matt Bell, Indra Das, Kelly Link, Sequoia Nagamatsu, and Rebecca Roanhorse.

    The winner will be announced on October 21st, which is Le Guin’s birthday. In the meantime, here’s the shortlist:

    rakesfallVajra Chandrasekera, Rakesfall
    (Tordotcom Publishing)

    Archangels of FunkAndrea Hairston, Archangels of Funk
    (Tordotcom Publishing)

    Blackheart ManNalo Hopkinson, Blackheart Man
    (Saga Press)

    The Sapling CageMargaret Killjoy, The Sapling Cage
    (Feminist Press)

    the west passageJared Pechaček, The West Passage
    (Tordotcom Publishing)

    the city in glassNghi Vo, The City in Glass
    (Tordotcom Publishing)

    north continent ribbonUrsula Whitcher, North Continent Ribbon
    (Neon Hemlock)

    Eden Robins' Remember You Will DieEden Robins, Remember You Will Die
    (Sourcebooks Landmark)

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