Nominations for the Witold Pilecki International Book Award 2025 (fifth edition) - Instytut Pileckiego

We know the authors nominated for the fifth edition of the Witold Pilecki International Book Award! Out of 60 submissions, the Awards Committee has selected 12 publications to compete in three categories.

Since 2021, the Pilecki Institute has been annually awarding the Witold Pilecki International Book Award in three categories: academic history book, historical reportage and special prize. This year, 60 books published by 35 publishing houses from both Poland and abroad have been submitted to the competition.

The award will be presented to authors of the best academic and reportage books that were published in 2024 and are devoted to the experience of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe of confronting totalitarianism in the 20th century, with a particular emphasis on Poland.

The partner of the award is the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim.

The books entered for the present edition of the competition demonstrate a high level of academic and literary skill, as well as explore topics of particular importance for both history and the Polish society. The selected publications distinguish themselves by a novel approach, well-documented findings and commitment to the truth.

NOMINATIONS 2025

On 8 October 2025, the Awards Committee composed of: Dr. Piotr Cywiński, Prof. Padraic Kenney, Krzysztof Kosior, Prof. Damian Markowski, Aneta Prymaka-Oniszk, Prof. Pierre-Frédéric Weber, and Dr. Kazimierz Wóycicki, selected this year’s nominations.

In the academic history book category, the Awards Committee chose the best monographs on the experience of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe of confronting totalitarianism in the 20th century, with a particular emphasis on Poland. The shortlist includes the following five books:

• Michał Bilewicz, Traumaland. Polacy w cieniu przeszłości, Wydawnictwo MANDO / Wydawnictwo WAM,
• Tomasz Ceran, Zbrodnia pomorska 1939. Początek ludobójstwa niemieckiego w okupowanej Polsce, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej,
• Piotr M. Majewski, Brzydkie słowo na „k”. Rzecz o kolaboracji, Wydawnictwo Krytyki Politycznej,
• Dariusz Węgrzyn, „Internirung”. Deportacja mieszkańców Górnego Śląska do ZSRS na tle wywózek niemieckiej ludności cywilnej z terenu Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej do sowieckich łagrów pod koniec II wojny światowej, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej,
• Rafał Wnuk, Sławomir Poleszak, Niezłomni czy realiści? Polskie podziemie antykomunistyczne bez patosu, Wydawnictwo Literackie.

In the historical reportage category, the Awards Committee selected books that offer the reader an engaging story about the experience of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe of confronting totalitarianism in the 20th century, with a particular emphasis on Poland. The shortlist includes the following four publications:

• Patrycja Dołowy, Pęknięte lustro. Próba portretu Adama Czerniakowa, Wydawnictwo Filtry,
• Grzegorz Gauden, Polska sprawa Dreyfusa. Kto próbował zabić prezydenta, Wydawnictwo Agora,
• Emil Marat, Bratny. Hamlet rozstrzelany, Wydawnictwo Czarne,
• Michał Przeperski, Dziki Wschód. Transformacja po polsku 1986–1993, Wydawnictwo Literackie.

In the special prize category, the Awards Committee was searching for books that bear testimony to the criminal actions of contemporary totalitarian and authoritarian systems, describe the tragic fate of populations affected by wars and armed conflicts (war reportage), and condemn deliberate and persistent violation of human rights. The shortlist includes the following three publications:

• Maria Buko, Drugie pokolenie obozowe. Pamięć i doświadczenie potomków polskich więźniów niemieckich nazistowskich obozów koncentracyjnych, Wydawnictwo Naukowe UMK,
• Maksym Eristavi, Russian Colonialism 101. How to Occupy a Neighbor and Get Away with It. An Illustrated Guide, IST Publishing,
• Serhii Plokhy, Rosja–Ukraina. Największe starcie XXI wieku, Wydawnictwo Znak Horyzont.

We offer our warm congratulations to the nominees and their publishers and wish them the best of luck. The winners of the Witold Pilecki International Book Award will be announced during a gala ceremony held in December 2025. All the shortlisted authors, however, can already consider themselves successful, for their books were selected from among a great number of valuable publications.

The authors of the best books in the first two categories will be awarded PLN 46,850 gross, while the winner of the special prize will be awarded PLN 45,000 gross. All the authors will receive a commemorative statuette. In each of the three categories, honorary mentions may also be conferred, accompanied by an award of PLN 5,000 gross. The awards will be presented during a gala ceremony in December 2025.

THE WINNERS OF PREVIOUS EDITIONS

In the previous edition, the Pilecki Award was presented to Grzegorz Hryciuk for his book Przesiedleńcy. Wielka epopeja Polaków 1944–1946. In the historical reportage category, the award went to Kalina Błażejowska for Bezduszni. Zapomniana zagłada chorych. The special prize was awarded to Christopher Miller for his book The War Came To Us: Life and Death in Ukraine. 

In 2023, the Pilecki Award was presented to Agnieszka Witkowska-Krych for her book Dziecko wobec Zagłady. Instytucjonalna opieka nad sierotami w getcie warszawskim and to Bartłomiej Noszczak for his book Orient zesłańców. Bliski Wschód w oczach Polaków ewakuowanych ze Związku Sowieckiego (1942–1945). The prize for war correspondents was awarded to Zbigniew Parafianowicz for Śniadanie pachnie trupem. Ukraina na wojnie.

In 2022, the winners of the second edition were Niemiecki zbrodniarz przed polskim sądem. Krakowskie procesy przed Najwyższym Trybunałem Narodowym by Dr. Joanna Lubecka (academic history book) and Wielka gra majora Żychonia. As wywiadu kontra Rzesza by Andrzej Brzeziecki (historical reportage). The special prize was awarded to Tomaš Forró for Apartament w hotelu wojna. Reportaż z Donbasu.

In 2021, the Pilecki Award was presented to Filip Gańczak for his book Jan Sehn. Tropiciel nazistów and to Christina Lamb for her famous work Our Bodies, Their Battlefield: What War Does to Women (in 2023, the book was published in Polish as Nasze ciała, ich pole bitwy).

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