PEN/Faulkner Award 2019: Complete list of winners

The PEN/Faulkner Award, one of the most prestigious honors for fiction writers in America, celebrated its remarkable legacy once again with the 2019 winners announcement. This year’s Fiction winner, Call Me Zebra by Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi, represents exactly the kind of adventurous, intellectually ambitious storytelling the award has championed since its inception in 1981. Oloomi’s debut novel—a genre-defying meditation on identity, exile, and the transformative power of literature—caught the attention of a distinguished panel of judges who recognized it as a standout in an exceptionally strong field of entries.

The PEN/Faulkner Award has long served as a crucial counterweight to other major literary prizes, often championing voices and visions that might be overlooked elsewhere. Named after the legendary American novelist William Faulkner, the award is voted on by fellow writers rather than critics or industry professionals, which gives it a unique credibility within the literary community. Call Me Zebra’s selection reflects a continued commitment to recognizing the kind of formally inventive, boundary-pushing fiction that keeps American letters vital and surprising.

Below, you’ll find complete details about this year’s honoree and what makes their work essential reading for anyone following contemporary American fiction.

Fiction

• Call Me Zebra by Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi