Washington Center for the Book announces 2026 Washington State Book Award winners
Sara Peté/ September 15, 2026/ Books, Washington authors, Washington State Book Awards
The Washington Center for the Book (an affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book administered by Washington State Library) has selected winners in seven categories for the 2026 Washington State Book Awards (WSBA) for outstanding books published by Washington authors in 2025. This is the 60th year of the program, formerly called the Governor’s Writers Awards.
We are proud to shine a light on these excellent works, spanning many genres and forms, and coming from communities spread across our state. Readers seeking belonging, beauty, magic, mystery, humor, solace, wonder, and much, much more will find what they are looking for in these expertly crafted books.
Creative Nonfiction/Memoir Winner:
Alterations (Transit Books) by Cori Winrock of Bellingham
Fiction Winner:
Sinkhole, and Other Inexplicable Voids (Penguin Random House) by Leyna Krow of Spokane
General Nonfiction/Biography Winner:
Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution (Alfred A. Knopf) by Cat Bohannon of Seattle
Poetry Winner:
Cold Thief Place (Alice James Books) by Esther Lin of Seattle
Picture Books Winner:
A Gift of Dust: How Saharan Plumes Feed the Planet (Knopf) by Martha Brockenbrough of Seattle, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal
Books for Young Readers Winner:
Unlikely Aventuras of Ramón and El Cucuy (Abrams) by Donna Barba Higuera of Poulsbo, illustrated by Juliana Perdomo
Young Adult Literature Winner:
On the Wings of la Noche (Knopf Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House) by Vanessa L. Torres of Olympia
Check out the full list of 2026 finalists at this link.
ABOUT THE AWARDS
The Washington State Book Awards are presented by the Washington Center for the Book (an affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book administered by Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State). The 2026 awards are administered by Sara Peté, Director of the Washington Center for the Book.
These awards honor outstanding books published by Washington authors in 2025. An award is given based on the strength of the publication’s literary merit, lasting importance and overall quality to an author who is a current resident of Washington state. For the 2026 book awards, judges read and evaluated 308 books.
Submissions for the 2027 awards cycle are being accepted at this time. For more information, see the Washington Center for the Book’s website.
JUDGES
2026 WSBA Judges are librarians, authors, and independent booksellers.
Judges for adult titles:
Robin Bradford, Collection Development Librarian, Pierce County Library System
Charity Cree, Associate Director of Programs and Outreach, Mid-Columbia Libraries
E.J. Koh, Author and Washington State Book Award winner and finalist
Sarah Morrison, Public Librarian, Western Washington
Emma Radosevich, Collection Development Librarian, Whatcom County Library System
Judges for youth titles:
Louise Chambers, Elementary Librarian, Highline Public Schools
Jen Haas, Librarian, Echo Glen Children’s Center
Tana Phillips, Library Associate, Sno-Isle Libraries
Media Coverage:
Washington State Book Awards 2026 winners announced – The Seattle Times
Washington State Book Award Winners Announced – 425 Magazine
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