2025 Aspen Words Literary Prize & Community Read
The Community Read, presented by Aspen Words and the Pitkin County Library, strives to celebrate literature, unite readers around a work of fiction, and ignite meaningful conversation on the vital social issues explored in each year's Aspen Words Literary Prize winning novel and those nominated.
After the Aspen Words Literary Prize winner is chosen, Aspen Words and the Library partner together to provide 230 copies of the winning book to community members.
Book Distribution Party
Tuesday, July 22 | 5:00pm-6:00pm | Dunaway Community Meeting Room
Join us for the Community Read Distribution Party!
Celebrate the joy of reading and community as we come together to kick off the Community Read program! Pick up a free copy of this year's featured book and connect with fellow readers. Whether you're a lifelong book lover or new to the program, this event is the perfect opportunity to dive into a great story and share the experience with others. Enjoy light refreshments, exciting giveaways, and an evening filled with literary fun. Don’t miss out—come and be a part of the community-wide reading adventure!
Aspen Word Literary Prize 2025 Winner
The 2025 Winner has been announced! Learn more about this year's novels and authors.
Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
Colorado, 1864, Star, a young survivor of the Sand Creek Massacre, is brought to the Fort Marion prison-castle, where he is forced to learn English and practice Christianity by Richard Henry Pratt, an evangelical prison guard who will go on to found the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, an institution dedicated to the eradication of Native history, culture, and identity. A generation later, Star's son, Charles, is sent to the school, where he is brutalized by the man who was once his father's jailer. Under Pratt's harsh treatment, Charles clings to moments he shares with a young fellow student, Opal Viola, as the two envision a future away from the institutional violence that follows their bloodlines.
Aspen Words Literary Prize 2025 Ceremony
Aspen Words Literary Prize 2025 Longlist
Previous Community Read Books
Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad
2024 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
Isabella Hammad Author Talk with Aspen Public Radio
The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories by Jamil Jan Kochai
2023 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
Jamil Jan Kochai Author Talk with Aspen Public Radio
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton
2022 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
Dawnie Walton Author Talk with Aspen Public Radio
The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich
2021 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri
2020 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
2019 Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
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Aspen Words was founded in 1976 as a literary center based in Aspen, CO. A program of the Aspen Institute, its mission is to encourage writers, inspire readers and connect people through the power of stories. The Aspen Words Literary Prize is a $35,000 annual award for an influential work of fiction that illuminates a vital contemporary issue and demonstrates the transformative power of literature on thought and culture. Open to authors of any nationality, the award is one of the largest literary prizes in the United States and one of the few focused exclusively on fiction with a social impact. The inaugural award was presented in 2018 to Mohsin Hamid for his novel Exit West.