Living Canon

National Book Critics Circle Award 2009: Complete list of winners

The 2009 National Book Critics Circle Awards proved to be a landmark year for literary recognition, celebrating works that would go on to define the decade’s most significant writing. The NBCC awards, among the most prestigious honors in American letters, honored six exceptional books across their major categories. Hilary Mantel’s historical fiction juggernaut Wolf Hall took the fiction prize, while Richard Holmes’ sweeping exploration of scientific discovery, The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science, claimed the nonfiction award. Poetry’s honor went to Rae Armantrout for Versed, a collection that showcased her distinctive voice in contemporary verse.

Beyond fiction and poetry, the 2009 National Book Critics Circle Award winners demonstrated the breadth of literary excellence the organization champions. Blake Bailey’s Cheever: A Life earned the biography award, offering readers a definitive portrait of the acclaimed American writer. Eula Biss brought sharp cultural commentary to the criticism category with Notes from No Man’s Land: American Essays, while Diana Athill’s graceful Somewhere Towards the End rounded out the winners in the autobiography category. Together, these six works represented a remarkable range of voices and perspectives, from historical reimagining to personal reflection.

Below, you’ll find comprehensive details on each winner in the National Book Critics Circle 2009 awards:

Autobiography

Biography

Criticism

Fiction

Nonfiction

Poetry