2016 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction
Marilynne Robinson is author of such critically acclaimed novels as “Gilead” and “Home.”
Robinson was born in Sandpoint, Idaho, in 1943. She is the author of five novels: “Jack” (2020); “Lila” (2014), winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award; “Home” (2008), winner of the Orange Prize (UK) and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize; “Gilead” (2004), winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award; and “Housekeeping” (1980), winner of PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Fiction. Her five nonfiction books include “The Givenness of Things: Essays” (2015) and “The Death of Adam: Essays on Modern Thought” (1998).
Robinson’s many other honors include the American Academy of Arts and Letters Mildred and Harold Strauss Living Fund, the National Humanities Medal, and the American Academy of Religion in the Arts Award. Robinson, a longtime faculty member of the University of Iowa Writers Workshop, is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Robinson lives in Iowa City, Iowa, where she is a deacon for the Congregational United Church of Christ.
Acting Librarian of Congress David Mao chose Robinson based on the recommendation of a jury of distinguished authors and prominent literary critics from around the world. He said of the selection, “With the depth and resonance of her novels, Marilynne Robinson captures the American soul. We are proud to confer this prize on her and her extraordinary work.”
“American literature has been a kind of spiritual home to me for as long as I have been aware of it. So this award could not be more gratifying,” Robinson said.
- View Resource Guide on Marilynne Robinson
- News Release: Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction Awarded to Marilynne Robinson (March 28, 2016)
- Video of Marilynne Robinson at the 2015 National Book Festival
- Video of Marilynne Robinson at the 2012 National Book Festival
- Video of Marilynne Robinson at the 2009 National Book Festival