Tess Gunty (born 1993) is an American novelist. Her

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

, ''

The Rabbit Hutch ''The Rabbit Hutch'' is a 2022 debut novel by American novelist Tess Gunty and winner of the 2022 National Book Award for Fiction The National Book Award for Fiction is one of five annual National Book Awards, which recognize outstanding li ...

'', won the 2022

National Book Award for Fiction The National Book Award for Fiction is one of five annual National Book Awards, which recognize outstanding literary work by United States citizens. Since 1987, the awards have been administered and presented by the National Book Foundation, bu ...

and the

Indiana Authors Awards The Indiana Authors Awards, also known as the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Awards, is a literary awards program that recognizes and honors authors from Indiana and literary works about Indiana. In 2020, awards were given in eight cate ...

in 2024.

Early life and education

Gunty was born and raised in

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...

. She graduated from the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in English and from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

with a Masters in Fine Arts degree in creative writing.

Career

Gunty's first novel, ''

'', was published by

Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Blanche Knopf and Alfred A. Knopf Sr. in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers ...

on August 2, 2022, and was awarded the

in November 2022. It received generally favorable reviews from critics. The novel also received the inaugural

Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize The Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, established in 2022, is an annual literary award presented by British bookseller Waterstones Waterstones Booksellers Limited, trading as Waterstones (formerly Waterstone's), is a British bookselling, ...

. It was a finalist for the 2022

John Leonard Prize The John Leonard Prize for Best First Book, established in 2013, is an annual literary award presented by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) for authors' first books in any genre. Unlike other NBCC awards, recipients are selected by members, ...

, awarded by the

National Book Critics Circle The National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) is an American nonprofit organization (501(c) organization, 501(c)(3)) with more than 700 members. It is the professional association of American book review editors and critics, known primarily for the N ...

for a first book in any genre.

Awards

Works

Books

* * (forthcoming)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunty, Tess New York University alumni 21st-century American women writers 21st-century American novelists Living people Writers from South Bend, Indiana National Book Award winners Novelists from Indiana American women novelists Notre Dame College of Arts and Letters alumni 1993 births