Just Launched AwardShelf - A Free Database of Award-Winning Books!
I love reading new books and got into the habit of reading winners/nominees from a few different awards that I followed, mostly through lists on Goodreads or blogs.
Got tired of incomplete lists so I built AwardShelf!
What makes AwardShelf special:
📚 Thousands of curated titles - from Pulitzer and Booker Prize winners to International Booker and Women's Prize champions 🏆 Multi-award tracking - easily spot books that have been recognized multiple times (like Piranesi with 4 nominations!)
📅 Historical browsing - explore award winners by year to see how literary tastes have evolved
🌍 Global perspective - discover exceptional literature from every continent, not just the usual suspects
🔍 Smart discovery - filter by award type, year, author, or nomination status to find your perfect next read
It's completely free. No ads, no paywalls, no premium tiers. Just pure book discovery.
I built this because I was tired of reading the same recommendations everywhere and wanted to tap into the collective wisdom of literary juries worldwide. If a book has impressed multiple award committees, it's probably worth your time!
Would love to hear from fellow readers:
- What awards would you like to see added?
- Any features that would make your book discovery easier?
- How do you currently find your next great read?
Replies
Nice idea, but without indie awards it feels a bit mainstream heavy.
@athar_jatoi Thanks! Yeah absolutely, we will be adding new awards every couple of days. Do you have any in particular you would like to see added?
Historical browsing is neat, though the UI could use a timeline view.
@ben_d3 Thanks! Nice idea - will add that to the features list!
Global scope is promising, but I didn't see many African lit prizes.
@james_wilson48 Thanks for the feedback! We have a big list of awards to add over the coming months - trying to make sure everything we add is accurate so the aim is to add 2-3 awards per week until we run out of awards to add!
Do you have any particular awards you would like added?
I'm genuinely impressed! Usually, I find award lists scattered across blogs with missing years. A central, organized shelf feels long overdue. Please consider including sci-fi and fantasy-specific awards like Hugo or Nebula.
@mahindra_pasman Thank you!
We have both the Nebula and Hugo awards, check them out here :
https://awardshelf.com/award/nebula-award-for-best-novel/
https://awardshelf.com/award/hugo-award/
Happy reading!
I think adding children’s book awards could be a great touch too.
Multi award tracking is useful, but maybe add visual charts for clarity.
Love this! I've always wanted a way to explore how book prizes change with time. Seeing historical winners year by year is great. I'd also enjoy seeing debut prize winners highlighted.