Longwood University has revealed the finalists for the John Dos Passos Prize for Literature, given annually to “one of America’s most talented writers.”
Gish Jen, whose books include Mona in the Promised Land, The Love Wife, and The Resisters, made this year’s shortlist; her latest novel, Bad Bad Girl, was published Tuesday by Knopf.
Ayana Mathis, author of The Twelve Tribes of Hattie and The Unsettled, was named a finalist, as was Eugene Lim, whose novels include The Strangers, Dear Cyborgs, and Search History.
Lindsey Drager made the shortlist; her books include The Lost Daughter Collective, The Archive of Alternate Endings, and The Avian Hourglass. Also up for the award is Chinelo Okparanta, the author of Happiness, Like Water; Under the Udala Trees; and Harry Sylvester Bird.
David Magill, a professor at Longwood and chair of the prize jury, said, “The five finalists for this year’s Dos Passos are each distinct in their approach to writing and their subjects of interest, but what they all share is a deep and abiding interest in language. Each author challenges us to reconsider what we know about the world and how we know it.”
The Dos Passos Prize, named for the author of the U.S.A. Trilogy, was established in 1980. Previous winners include Graham Greene, John Edgar Wideman, Annie Proulx, Ruth Ozeki, Karen Tei Yamashita, and Angie Cruz.
The winner of the 2025 award will be announced later this year.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
