RICHMOND, VIRGINIA – The Library of Virginia is pleased to announce 12 finalists for its annual People’s Choice Award. The finalists represent the most-requested fiction and nonfiction titles by Virginia authors, or about the Commonwealth, published in 2025.  

Winners will be announced at the 29th Annual Virginia Literary Awards Celebration, the Commonwealth’s biggest night honoring its authors and their stories, on Sept. 19, 2026.  

The public is invited to select the winners by voting anytime between June 1 and July 15, 2026. Individuals can vote online at https://lvafoundation.org/peopleschoiceawards.  

This year’s fiction finalists for the People’s Choice Award are:  
Author | Title 

David Baldacci | Strangers in Time: A World War II Novel 

S.A. Cosby | King of Ashes 

Virginia Evans | The Correspondent 

Bruce Holsinger | Culpability 

Corinne Michaels | All Too Well 

Adriana Trigiani | The View from Lake Como 

This year’s nonfiction finalists for the People's Choice Award are: 
Author | Title 

Stephen Starring Grant | Mailman: My Wild Ride Delivering the Mail in Appalachia and Finally Finding Home 

Jane Harrington | Women of The Fairy Tale Resistance: The Forgotten Founding Mothers of the Fairy Tale And the Stories That They Spun 

Andrew Lawler | A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution 

Douglas Waller | The Determined Spy: The Turbulent Life and Times of CIA Pioneer Frank Wisner 

Paula Whyman | Bad Naturalist: One Woman's Ecological Education on a Wild Virginia Mountaintop 

Gerri Willis | Lincoln's Lady Spymaster: The Untold Story of the Abolitionist Southern Belle Who Helped Win the Civil War 

In addition to the award and distinguished recognition, winners in each category receive a monetary prize of $2,500. For award information and a list of past winners and finalists, please visit www.lva.virginia.gov/public/litawards/peoples-choice-award.php. 

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ABOUT THE VIRGINIA LITERARY AWARDS  
Hosted by award-winning author Adriana Trigiani, the 29th Annual Virginia Literary Awards Celebration will be held on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, with nominated authors, presenters and special guests. Dominion Energy is the presenting sponsor for this annual event, which attracts all who enjoy the written word and support literature. The festivities kick off on Friday, Sept. 18 with the Art in Literature: The Mary Lynn Kotz Award at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Tickets are available for purchase at www.lvafoundation.org/tickets. For sponsorships, please call 804-692-3592. 

ABOUT THE LIBRARY OF VIRGINIA  
The Library of Virginia is the leading source of information on Virginia’s history, government and people. The Library’s collections, containing more than 134 million items, document and illustrate the lives of both famous Virginians and ordinary citizens. Our online resources draw nearly 2 million website visits per year, and our on-site records, exhibitions and events bring in thousands of visitors annually. The Library is located in downtown Richmond near Capitol Square at 800 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219. Learn more at www.lva.virginia.gov.