The American Library Association (ALA) has selected A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar as the winner of the 2026 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, and THINGS IN NATURE MERELY GROW by Yiyun Li as the winner of the 2026 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.

The Carnegie Awards, established in 2012, serve as a guide to help adults select quality reading material. They are the first single-book awards for adult books given by ALA and reflect the expert judgment and insight of library professionals and booksellers who work closely with adult readers. Click here for more information.
 

2026 Winners

Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction

• A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar (Knopf)
   

Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction

• THINGS IN NATURE MERELY GROW by Yiyun Li (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
   

2025 Shortlist

Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction

• A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar (Knopf)
• THE UNWORTHY by Agustina Bazterrica, translated by Sarah Moses (Scribner)
• WE DO NOT PART by Han Kang, translated by e. yaewon and Paige Aniyah Morris (Hogarth)

Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction

• BALDWIN, STYRON, AND ME by Mélikah Abdelmoumen, translated by Catherine Khordoc 
• (Biblioasis)
• THERE IS NO PLACE FOR US: Working and Homeless in America, by Brian Goldstone (Crown)
• THINGS IN NATURE MERELY GROW by Yiyun Li (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)