Dateline Dehradun: In sync with tradition, the Valley of Words Literature and Arts Festival announced the Shortlist for the REC-VoW Book Awards 2026 to coincide with the PN Panicker National Reading Day and Digital Reading Month i.e. 19th June to 18th July.
The VoW Jury which finalizes the Shortlist comprised of previous year winners’ which included Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri for English Fiction, Soni Pande in Hindi Fiction, Sudhir Vidhyarthi for the Hindi Non-Fiction, Sulabha Kore for Hindi Anuvaad, Kripa for Young Adult Literature, Karan Madhok for English Non-Fiction, Banibrata Mahanta for English Translation and Neil Flory for Children’s Writings/Picture Books.
The rigorous selection procedure started in February, 2026. Over 600 books in Hindi and English were nominated to the Festival from over seventy leading publishing houses across the country. The books were read and reviewed extensively in Dehradun and then selected by our esteemed resource persons and the Jury before announcing the Shortlist of five books in each of the 8 categories.
Festival Director Dr Sanjeev Chopra stated, “The shortlist this year has been special – in terms of diversity of themes, the treatment of subjects, the forthright views on conventional subjects, and the exploration of the new. The illustrations in the Young Adult and Children Literature section embellish the text.” He further thanked the Jury stating, “We at VoW are extremely grateful to our Jury members for having read all the books so meticulously.”
The REC-VoW Book Awards are conferred upon the ‘Best Author’ across eight categories and is a major highlight of the annual VoW festival. All 8 winners will be felicitated at the Signature event being held in Dehradun on the 28th-29th November, 2026.
One-of-a-kind, not-for-profit and volunteer-driven initiative of the Valley of Words Foundation Trust, VoW | Shabdavali has over the course of a decade become a pan-Indian celebration of Indian writing and artistry. With each passing year the event reaffirms its mission and continues to spotlight new talent across and beyonds boundaries to inspire and enrich India’s literary landscape.
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