Valley of Words Announces Shortlist for VoW Book Awards 2025 Ahead of October Festival

Valley of Words (VoW), a not-for-profit organisation that celebrates Indian writing and authors, has announced the shortlist for the VoW Book Awards 2025. The awards will be presented across eight categories at the ninth edition of the Valley of Words Literature and Arts Festival, which will take place in Dehradun on October 25 and 26, 2025. 

Festival Director Dr. Sanjeev Chopra said that this year’s shortlist is significant as it highlights stories from the Himalayas, coinciding with Uttarakhand’s Silver Jubilee. He noted that the VoW Book Awards received over 500 entries from 50 publishers in 2025, demonstrating the diversity of Indian literature.

For each of the eight categories, the final shortlist of five books was selected from a longlist of 10 titles, resulting in 40 books being nominated. The categories include English Non-Fiction, English Fiction, English Translation, Hindi Non-Fiction, Hindi Fiction, Hindi Translation, Young Adult Literature, and Children’s Literature.

In English Non-Fiction, the shortlist includes Ananda: An Exploration of Cannabis in India by Karan Madhok, Engineering a Nation: The Life and Career of M. Visvesvaraya by Aparajith Ramnath, Iconic Trees of India: 75 Natural Wonders by S. Natesh, Rukhmabai: The Life and Times of a Child Bride Turned Rebel-Doctor by Sudhir Chandra, and This Land We Call Home: The Story of a Family, Caste, Conversions & Modern India by Nusrat Jafri.

The English Fiction category includes Border Crossers by Bhaskar Roy, Hill Songs of Love and Longing by Bijoya Sawian, Island by Sujit Saraf, Never Never Land by Namita Gokhale, and Swallowing the Sun by Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri.

In English Translation, the shortlisted titles are Dalit Kitchens of Marathwada translated by Bhushan Kargaonkar, Lavanyadevi translated by Banibrata Mahanta, Ten Days of the Strike translated by Arunava Sinha, The Temple of No Gods translated by Sayari Debnath, and White Blood translated by Dilraj Singh Suri.

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The Hindi Non-Fiction category includes Hampi: Uttkarsh Se Upkarsh Tak by Tapas Chakraborty, Himalaya ka Itihas by Dr Madan Chandra Bhatt, Bidaay De Maa by Sudhir Vidyarthi, Pathik Main Aravali Ka by Bhanwar Meghwanshi, and Khaki Mein Sthitapragya: Ek IPS Adhikari ki Smiritiyan avam Anubhav by Anil Raturi.

For Hindi Fiction, the shortlist includes Atar: Duniya Mein Kya Haasil by Pratyaksha, Kaandhon Par Ghar by Pragya, Zoya Desai Cottage by Pankaj Subeer, Vaanya by Manisha Kulshreshtha, and Suno Kabir by Soni Pandey.

In Hindi Translation, the titles shortlisted are In Love with Death translated by Parijat, Uttar Bharat Mein Chamar Aur Dalit Aandolan Ka Itihas translated by Kanwal Bharti, Khaulta Punjab translated by Tarsem, Bahattar Meel translated by Sulabha Kore, and Shiuli Ki Gandh aur Anya Kahaniyan translated by Utpal Banerjee.

The Young Adult Literature category includes A History of South India for Children by Pradeep Chakravarthy, art is a voice by Kripa, Myth, Memory & Folktale of the Wancho Tribe of Arunanchal Pradesh by Tara Douglas and Jatwang Wangsa, PNK Panicker's Ghost Stories by Suresh Eriyat, and Raman and Chandrasekhar by Arundhati Venkatesh.

In Children’s Literature, the shortlisted books are A Roof for Norbu by Sujatha Padmanabhan and Labonie Roy, A Tree in My Stomach by Nandita Rao and Charbak Dipta, Cactus Wants a Hug by Neil Flory and Simon Yeo, What Am I Good At? by Rahul Pradhan and Sunaina Coelho, and Will Goondi Come Home? by Adithi Rao and Fida Hamid.

As per VoW tradition, the jury for each category is largely composed of the previous year’s winners. The 2025 jury includes journalist and author Manoj Mitta for English Non-Fiction, Smriti Ravindra for English Fiction, Dr Jaiwanti Dimri for English Translation, Uday Prakash for Hindi Fiction, Dr Suresh Pant for Hindi Non-Fiction, Subhash Neerav for Hindi Translation, Shabnam Minwalla for Young Adult Literature, and Vibha Batra for Children’s Literature.

Winners in each category will receive a prize of ₹1 lakh and a trophy. They will also feature in a dedicated session at the Valley of Words Festival in Dehradun.