The Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize is a

literary prize A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. Man ...

created in 1988 by the newspaper the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

''. It is awarded yearly in two categories: Fiction and Nonfiction. These prizes are awarded to books that "reinforce and perpetuate the values of heartland America."

Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize — Fiction

*2019:

Rebecca Makkai Rebecca Makkai (born April 20, 1978) is an American novelist and short story writer. She is best known for writing '' The Great Believers'' (2018) and '' I Have Some Questions for You'' (2023), which have been positively received by critics and ...

for ''The Great Believers'' *2018:

George Saunders George Saunders (born December 2, 1958) is an American writer of short stories, essays, novellas, children's books, and novels. His writing has appeared in ''The New Yorker'', ''Harper's'', ''McSweeney's'', and '' GQ''. He also contributed a we ...

for ''

Lincoln in the Bardo ''Lincoln in the Bardo'' is a 2017 experimental novel by American writer George Saunders. It is Saunders's first novel and was a ''New York Times'' bestseller. The novel takes place during and after the death of Abraham Lincoln's son Willie L ...

'' *2017:

Colson Whitehead Arch Colson Chipp Whitehead (born November 6, 1969) is an American novelist. He is the author of nine novels, including his 1999 in literature, 1999 debut ''The Intuitionist''; ''The Underground Railroad (novel), The Underground Railroad'' (2016) ...

for '' The Underground Railroad'' *2016:

Jane Smiley Jane Smiley (born September 26, 1949) is an American novelist. She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1992 for her novel ''A Thousand Acres'' (1991). Biography Born in Los Angeles, California, Smiley grew up in Webster Groves, Missouri, a subu ...

for ''Golden Age'' *2015:

Chang-Rae Lee Chang-rae Lee (born July 29, 1965) is a Korean-American novelist and a professor of creative writing at Stanford University. He was previously Professor of Creative Writing at Princeton and director of Princeton University's Program in Creative ...

for ''On Such a Full Sea'' *2014:

Daniel Woodrell Daniel Woodrell (born March 4, 1953) is an American novelist and short story writer, who has written nine novels, most of them set in the Missouri Ozarks, and one collection of short stories. Woodrell coined the phrase " country noir" to describ ...

for ''The Maid's Version'' *2013:

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (born Grace Ngozi Adichie; 15 September 1977) is a Nigerians, Nigerian writer of novels, short stories, poem, and children's books; she is also a book reviewer and literary critic. Her most famous works include ''Purple ...

for ''

Americanah ''Americanah'' is the third novel by Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It was published on May 14, 2013, by Alfred A. Knopf. It won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction in 2013. ''Americanah'' recounts the story of a youn ...

'' *2012:

Richard Ford Richard Ford (born February 16, 1944) is an American novelist and short story author, and writer of a series of novels featuring the character Frank Bascombe. Ford's first collection of short stories, ''Rock Springs (short stories), Rock Springs ...

for ''

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

'' * 2011:

Jonathan Franzen Jonathan Earl Franzen (born August 17, 1959) is an American novelist and essayist. His 2001 novel ''The Corrections'' drew widespread critical acclaim, earned Franzen a National Book Award, was a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction finalist, earned a Jame ...

for ''

Freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...

'' *2010:

E. O. Wilson Edward Osborne Wilson (June 10, 1929 – December 26, 2021) was an American biologist, naturalist, ecologist, and entomologist known for developing the field of sociobiology. Born in Alabama, Wilson found an early interest in nature and frequ ...

for ''

Anthill An ant colony is a population of ants, typically from a single species, capable of maintaining their complete lifecycle. Ant colonies are eusocial, communal, and efficiently organized and are very much like those found in other social Hymenop ...

'' *2009:

Jayne Anne Phillips Jayne Anne Phillips (born July 19, 1952) is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and short story writer who was born in the small town of Buckhannon, West Virginia. She is a former English professor at Rutgers-Newark from 2005 to 2020 and ...

for '' Lark and Termite'' *2008:

Aleksandar Hemon Aleksandar Hemon ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Xeмoн; born September 9, 1964) is a Bosnian- American author, essayist, critic, television writer, and screenwriter. He is best known for the novels '' Nowhere Man'' (2002) and '' The Lazarus P ...

for '' The Lazarus Project'' *2007:

Robert Olmstead Robert Olmstead (born January 3, 1954) is an American novelist and educator. Early life and education Olmstead was born in 1954 in Westmoreland, New Hampshire. He grew up on a farm. After high school, he enrolled at Davidson College with a footb ...

for '' Coal Black Horse'' *2006:

Louise Erdrich Karen Louise Erdrich ( ; born June 7, 1954) is an American author of novels, poetry, and children's books featuring Native American characters and settings. She is an enrolled citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North Dako ...

for ''The Painted Drum'' *2005:

Marilynne Robinson Marilynne Summers Robinson (born November 26, 1943) is an American novelist and essayist. Across her writing career, Robinson has received numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2005, National Humanities Medal in 2012, and th ...

for ''

Gilead Gilead or Gilad (, ; ''Gilʿāḏ'', , ''Jalʻād'') is the ancient, historic, biblical name of the mountainous northern part of the region of Transjordan.''Easton's Bible Dictionary'Galeed''/ref> The region is bounded in the west by the J ...

'' *2004:

Ward Just Ward Swift Just (September 5, 1935 – December 19, 2019) was an American writer. He was a war correspondent and the author of 19 novels and numerous short stories. Biography Just was born in Michigan City, Indiana, attended Lake Forest Academy ...

for '' An Unfinished Season'' *2003:

Scott Turow Scott Frederick Turow (born April 12, 1949) is an American author and lawyer. Turow worked as a lawyer for a decade before writing full-time, and has written 13 fiction and three nonfiction books, which have been translated into more than 40 la ...

for ''

Reversible Errors ''Reversible Errors'', published in 2002 (paperback edition by Picador, 2003) is Scott Turow's sixth novel, and like the others, set in fictional Kindle County. The title is a legal term. The novel was a ''New York Times'' best seller, won the ...

'' *2002:

Alice Sebold Alice Sebold (born September 6, 1963) is an American author. She is known for her novels '' The Lovely Bones'' and '' The Almost Moon'', and a memoir, '' Lucky''. ''The Lovely Bones'' was on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list and was adapt ...

for ''

The Lovely Bones ''The Lovely Bones'' is a 2002 novel by American writer Alice Sebold. It is the story of a teenage girl who, after being raped and murdered, watches from a personal heaven as her family and friends struggle to move on with their lives while she ...

'' *2001:

Mona Simpson Mona Simpson (née Jandali; June 14, 1957) is an American novelist. She has written six novels and studied English at University of California, Berkeley, and languages and literature at Columbia University. She won a Whiting Award for her first ...

for '' Off Keck Road'' *2000:

Jeffery Renard Allen Jeffery Renard Allen (born 1962) is an American poet, novelist, short story writer, and essayist. He is best known for his novels ''Rails Under My Back'' (2000) and '' Song of the Shank'' (2014), the latter of which was a finalist for the PEN/ ...

for '' Rails Under My Back'' *1999:

Elizabeth Strout Elizabeth Strout (born January 6, 1956) is an American novelist and author. She is widely known for her works in literary fiction and her descriptive characterization. She was born and raised in Portland, Maine, and her experiences in her yout ...

for '' Amy and Isabelle'' *1998:

Jane Hamilton Jane Hamilton (born July 13, 1957) is an American novelist. Early life Jane Hamilton was born and grew up in Oak Park, Illinois (U.S.), the youngest of five children. She won prizes for poetry and short stories throughout high school and colle ...

for '' The Short History of a Prince'' *1997:

Charles Frazier Charles Frazier (born November 4, 1950) is an American novelist. He won the 1997 National Book Award for Fiction for '' Cold Mountain''. Biography Early life Frazier was born in Asheville, North Carolina, grew up in Andrews and Franklin, No ...

for '' Cold Mountain'' *1996:

Antonya Nelson Antonya Nelson (born January 6, 1961) is an American author and teacher of creative writing who writes primarily short stories. Life and education Antonya Nelson was born January 6, 1961, in Wichita, Kansas. She received a BA degree from the U ...

for ''Talking in Bed'' *1995: William Maxwell for ''All The Days and Nights'' *1994:

Maxine Clair Maxine Clair (born 1939) is an American novelist, poet, and short story writer. Her debut novel ''Rattlebone'' won the Heartland Prize in 1994. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for fiction in 1995. Biography Clair attended the University ...

for '' Rattlebone'' *1993:

Annie Proulx Edna Ann Proulx ( ; born August 22, 1935) is an American novelist, short story writer, and journalist. She has written most frequently as Annie Proulx but has also used the names E. Annie Proulx and E.A. Proulx. She won the PEN/Faulkner Award f ...

for ''

The Shipping News ''The Shipping News'' is a novel by American author E. Annie Proulx and published by Charles Scribner's Sons in 1993. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the U.S. National Book Award, as well as other awards. It was adapted as a film of th ...

'' *1992:

for ''

A Thousand Acres ''A Thousand Acres'' is a 1991 novel by American author Jane Smiley. It won the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction in 1991 and was adapted to a 1997 film of the same name. It was premiered as an ...

'' *1991:

Kaye Gibbons Kaye Gibbons (born May 5, 1960) is an American novelist. Her first novel, '' Ellen Foster'' (1987), received the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, a Special Citation from the Ernest ...

for ''A Cure for Dreams'' *1990: Tim O'Brien for ''

The Things They Carried ''The Things They Carried'' (1990) is a collection of linked short stories by American novelist Tim O'Brien, about a platoon of American soldiers fighting on the ground in the Vietnam War. His third book about the war, it is based upon his ex ...

'' *1989:

for ''Jack Gance'' *1988: Eric Larsen for ''An American Memory''

Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize — Nonfiction

*2019:

Sarah Smarsh Sarah Smarsh (born 8 August 1980) is an American journalist and nonfiction writer. Background Smarsh was born in rural Kansas and grew up on farms and in small towns. Her family moved frequently, and she attended eight schools before she reac ...

for ''Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth'' *2018: Caroline Fraser for '' Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder'' *2017:

Matthew Desmond Matthew Desmond is a sociologist and the Maurice P. During Professor of Sociology at Princeton University, where he is also the principal investigator of the Eviction Lab. Desmond was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2022. He was ...

for '' Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City'' *2016:

Margo Jefferson Margo Lillian Jefferson (born October 17, 1947) is an American writer and academic. Biography Jefferson received her B.A. from Brandeis University, where she graduated ''cum laude'', and her M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of ...

for '' Negroland: A Memoir'' *2015:

Danielle Allen Danielle Susan Allen (born November 3, 1971) is an American classicist and political scientist. She is the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University. She is also the former Director of the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Et ...

for ''Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality'' *2014:

Jesmyn Ward Jesmyn Ward (born April 1, 1977) is an American novelist and a professor of English at Tulane University, where she holds the Andrew W. Mellon Professorship in the Humanities. She won the 2011 National Book Award for Fiction for her second novel ...

for '' Men We Reaped'' *2013:

Thomas Dyja Thomas Dyja is an American writer, living in New York City. He has written three novels, a biography of civil rights activist Walter Francis White, and historical books on Chicago and New York City. ''Play For A Kingdom'' received the Casey Award, ...

for ''The Third Coast: When Chicago Built the American Dream'' *2012:

Paul Hendrickson Paul Hendrickson (born April 29, 1944) is an American author, journalist, and professor. He is a senior lecturer and member of the Department of English at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a former member of the writing staff at the ''Washin ...

for ''Hemingway's Boat: Everything He Loved in Life and Lost 1934-1961'' * 2011:

Isabel Wilkerson Isabel Wilkerson (born 1961) is an American journalist and the author of '' The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration'' (2010) and '' Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents'' (2020). She is the first woman of African-A ...

for '' The Warmth of Other Suns'' *2010:

Rebecca Skloot Rebecca L. Skloot (born September 19, 1972) is an American science writer who specializes in science and medicine.Jessica Teisch, "Floyd Skloot & Rebecca Skloot", in '' Bookmarks'', May/June 2010. Her first book, '' The Immortal Life of Henrie ...

for ''

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks ''The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks'' (2010) is a non-fiction book by American author Rebecca Skloot. It was the 2011 winner of the National Academies Communication Award for best creative work that helps the public understanding of topics ...

'' *2009: Nick Reding for '' Methland: The Death and Life of an American Small Town'' *2008:

Garry Wills Garry Wills (born May 22, 1934) is an American author, journalist, political philosopher, and historian, specializing in American history, politics, and religion, especially the history of the Catholic Church. He won a Pulitzer Prize for Gener ...

for '' Head and Heart: American Christianities'' and '' What the Gospels Meant'' *2007: Orville Vernon Burton for '' The Age of Lincoln'' *2006:

Taylor Branch Taylor Branch (born January 14, 1947) is an American author and historian who wrote a Pulitzer Prize winning trilogy chronicling the life of Martin Luther King Jr. and much of the history of the American civil rights movement. The final volume o ...

for '' At Canaan's Edge: America in the King Years 1965-1968'' *2005: Kevin Boyle for '' Arc of Justice: A Saga of Race Civil Rights and Murder in the Jazz Age'' *2004:

Ann Patchett Ann Patchett (born December 2, 1963) is an American author. She received the 2002 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, PEN/Faulkner Award and the Orange Prize for Fiction in the same year, for her novel ''Bel Canto (novel), Bel Canto''. Patchett's othe ...

for '' Truth & Beauty: A Friendship'' *2003:

for '' Sons of Mississippi: A Story of Race and Its Legacy'' *2002:

Studs Terkel Louis "Studs" Terkel (May 16, 1912 – October 31, 2008) was an American writer, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction in 1985 for ''The Good War'' and is best remembered for his oral histor ...

for '' Will the Circle Be Unbroken?: Reflections on Death Rebirth and Hunger for a Faith'' *2001:

Louis Menand Louis Menand (; born January 21, 1952) is an American critic, essayist, and professor who wrote the Pulitzer-winning book '' The Metaphysical Club'' (2001), an intellectual and cultural history of late 19th- and early 20th-century America. Life ...

for '' The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America'' *2000:

Zachary Karabell Zachary Karabell (born July 6, 1967) is the founder of the Progress Network at New America, president of River Twice Capital, an author, and a columnist. In 2003, the World Economic Forum designated him a "Global Leader for Tomorrow." Career Ka ...

for '' The Last Campaign: How Harry Truman Won the 1948 Election'' *1999:

Jay Parini Jay Parini (born April 2, 1948) is an American writer and academic. He is known for novels, poetry, biography, screenplays and criticism. He has published novels about Leo Tolstoy, Walter Benjamin, Paul the Apostle, Herman Melville, and a noveli ...

for '' Robert Frost: A Life'' *1998:

Alex Kotlowitz Alex Kotlowitz (born March 31, 1955) is an American journalist, author, and filmmaker. His 1991 book '' There Are No Children Here'' was a national bestseller and received the Christopher Award and Helen Bernstein Award. He is a two-time recipi ...

for '' The Other Side of the River: A Story of Two Towns A Death and America's Dilemma'' *1997: Thomas Lynch for '' The Undertaking: Life Studies from the Dismal Trade'' *1996:

Jonathan Harr Jonathan Harr is an American writer, best known for the nonfiction work'' A Civil Action''. Early life and education Jonathan Ensor Harr was born 13 September 1948, in Beloit, Wisconsin, the son of John Ensor Harr (1 August 1926–14 November 200 ...

for ''

A Civil Action ''A Civil Action'' is a 1995 non-fiction book by Jonathan Harr about a water contamination case in Woburn, Massachusetts, in the 1980s. The book became a best-seller. It won the National Book Critics Circle Award for nonfiction. It is based ...

'' *1995: Richard Stern for '' A Sistermony'' *1994:

Henry Louis Gates Jr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. (born September 16, 1950), popularly known by his childhood nickname "Skip", is an American literary critic, professor, historian, and filmmaker who serves as the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and the director of t ...

for '' Colored People: A Memoir'' *1993:

Norman Maclean Norman Fitzroy Maclean (December 23, 1902August 2, 1990) was an American professor at the University of Chicago who, following his retirement, became a major figure in American literature. Maclean is best known for his Hemingwayesque writing, h ...

for '' Young Men and Fire'' *1992: Melissa Fay Greene for ''Praying for Sheetrock: A Work of Non-Fiction'' *1991:

William Cronon William Cronon (born September 11, 1954) is an American environmental historian and the Frederick Jackson Turner and Vilas Research Professor of History, Geography, and Environmental Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He was presi ...

for ''Nature's Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West'' *1990:

Michael Dorris Michael Anthony Dorris (January 30, 1945 – April 10, 1997) was an American novelist and scholar who was the first Chair of the Native American Studies program at Dartmouth College. His works include the novel '' A Yellow Raft in Blue Water'' ( ...

for ''The Broken Cord: A Family's Ongoing Struggle with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome'' *1989:

Joseph Epstein Joseph Epstein (October 16, 1911 – April 11, 1944), also known as Colonel Gilles and as Joseph Andrej, was a Polish-born Jewish communist activist and a French Resistance leader during World War II. He was executed by the Germans. Commun ...

for ''Partial Payments: Essays on Writers and Their Lives'' *1988:

Don Katz Donald R. Katz (born January 30, 1952
ITC, recorded 2005-05-09.) is an American author and businessman. ...

for ''The Big Store: Inside the Crisis and Revolution at Sears ''

References

{{Reflist 1988 establishments in Illinois American fiction awards American non-fiction literary awards Awards established in 1988 Chicago Tribune Literary awards by magazines and newspapers