Today's Read Contributor Acclaimed author George Saunders has been named the 2025 recipient of the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, one of the most prestigious honors in the literary world. Presented by the National Book Foundation, the award recognizes Saunders’s more than three decades of groundbreaking work in fiction, essays, and literary education. The formal presentation will take place at the 76th National Book Awards ceremony on November 19, 2025, in New York City.
With a body of work that spans genre, tone, and form, Saunders has carved a unique path through the American literary landscape. He is perhaps best known for his Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo, a formally daring narrative that blends historical fiction, spiritual reflection, and experimental structure. But his impact stretches far beyond that single achievement. His earlier short story collections, including Tenth of December and CivilWarLand in Bad Decline, helped establish him as a master of the short form, blending dystopian satire with poignant moral insight. His 2021 nonfiction work, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, became a surprise bestseller for its accessible and profound reflections on the craft of fiction, using Russian literature as a vehicle to explore what makes stories work and why they matter.
In awarding him the medal, the National Book Foundation highlighted Saunders’s extraordinary ability to explore complex social issues through humor, empathy, and structural innovation. David Steinberger, chair of the Foundation’s board, described Saunders’s fiction as “a mirror held up to the contradictions of American life—equal parts funny, tragic, and revelatory.” He also praised Saunders’s long-standing role as a mentor, noting that his contributions to the literary world extend well beyond his own publications, through his teaching and editorial work.
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For more than twenty years, Saunders has been a professor at Syracuse University’s MFA program in creative writing, where he has mentored some of the most acclaimed writers of the new generation. His influence continues through his popular Substack newsletter “Story Club,” where he regularly shares essays, writing exercises, and story discussions with thousands of readers and aspiring authors around the world. Through these efforts, Saunders has helped demystify the writing process, encouraging a new wave of thoughtful and risk-taking storytelling.
The Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters has a legacy of recognizing voices that shape the culture and consciousness of the nation. Saunders joins an elite group of past recipients, including literary giants like Toni Morrison, Ursula K. Le Guin, Isabel Allende, John Ashbery, and Louise Erdrich. That he is being honored in 2025—during a time of rapid social and technological change—speaks to the continued relevance of his voice. In an era where questions about identity, inequality, empathy, and moral clarity are more pressing than ever, Saunders’s work resonates deeply with readers seeking meaning amid uncertainty.
What sets Saunders apart is not only his stylistic innovation but the emotional core of his narratives. Whether set in surreal corporate theme parks or imagined purgatories, his stories consistently return to essential human themes: how we treat one another, how we fail and try again, and what it means to live with decency in an imperfect world. His work resists cynicism without ignoring injustice, offering instead a space where absurdity and tenderness coexist. In doing so, he has helped redefine what contemporary fiction can be—playful, philosophical, and deeply humane.
As the literary world prepares to celebrate Saunders’s contributions, the announcement also serves as a reminder of the enduring power of literature to challenge, comfort, and connect. At a time when cultural attention often favors speed and spectacle, Saunders invites readers to slow down, reflect, and imagine better ways of being. The 2025 Medal is not only a tribute to his past work but a recognition of the ongoing conversation he continues to lead about the role of stories in shaping who we are.
