With over 300 entries this year and a pool that seems to get stronger all the time, it was a tough job to pick just one winner in each category. We have been exposed to many unforgettable life experiences, as well as the work of many leaders working tirelessly for social change: nonprofit leaders, community organizers, medical and legal professionals, Ted Talk presenters, and more. In the end, it came down to those books that 3 or more judges unanimously found they could not stop reading!

Furthermore, we have removed honorary mentions this year in favor of creating more category winners. To that end we have created 23 categories of books. Four of these are unpublished manuscripts of which we will be publishing excerpts in the coming weeks in the hopes that they will soon find the perfect publishing home!

We thank everyone who made this possible. It’s been an honor to read everyone’s stories and we look forward to next year as we begin accepting new Memoir Prize nominations in June 2022.