Pulitzer Prize for Biography

An annual American literary award for distinguished biographies and autobiographies published in the United States. Established in 1917, it is one of the Pulitzer Prizes for letters.

The Power Broker: Robert Caro’s 1974 biography of New York urban planner and political figure Robert Moses. Its 1975 award became a landmark example of the prize’s recognition of deeply researched political biography.
Pulitzer Prize: A set of annual American awards recognizing achievements in journalism, literature, music, and drama. The biography award is one category within this larger prize program.
Pulitzer Prize Board: The body that oversees the Pulitzer Prizes and selects winners from finalist recommendations. The board makes the final decision for the biography award.
National Book Award for Nonfiction: An annual American literary award recognizing a nonfiction book published in the United States. It can honor biography but is not restricted to life writing.
American Prometheus: Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin’s biography of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. The book received the 2006 prize for its account of Oppenheimer’s scientific and political life.
Joseph Pulitzer: A Hungarian-American newspaper publisher whose bequest established the Pulitzer Prizes. His will provided the foundation for the awards and their literary categories.
Pulitzer Prize juries: Panels of specialists that evaluate submissions and recommend finalists in Pulitzer categories. The biography jury assesses eligible books and sends its recommendations to the board.
National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography: An annual award from the National Book Critics Circle recognizing a biography published in English. It is a prominent biography award with different selectors and eligibility rules.
The Dead Hand: David E. Hoffman’s history of the nuclear arms race after the Cold War. Its 2010 award illustrates how the category has honored biographical history centered on multiple lives.
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography: The category’s official name from 1962 through 2022, before it was renamed Pulitzer Prize for Biography. Its former title makes clear that autobiographies were explicitly named in the category.

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