German Non-Fiction Prize 2025: presenting the nominees

The jury for the German Non-Fiction Prize 2025 has shortlisted eight outstanding titles for the award. Since the call for submissions was announced, the seven members of the jury have reviewed 234 books published since April 2024, submitted by 133 publishers. 

Jury spokesperson Patricia Rahemipour, Institute for Museum Research, Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, released the following statement: 
“At their best, non-fiction books allow us to view the world from a certain distance and, paradoxically, with an immediacy that few genres can match. The criteria for selection are even more diverse. Surprising approaches and broad thematic scopes guided the jury’s choices. The nominated authors meet these conditions with ease, even when addressing the major issues of our time: war, education, AI and digitalisation, gender equality, the climate crisis, and formative historical events and figures. The eight shortlisted books explore these topics in ways that make complex issues accessible and readable, while also challenging familiar certainties with unconventional perspectives.”

The nominated titles (in alphabetical order) are:

• Ingo Dachwitz & Sven Hilbig, Digitaler Kolonialismus. Wie Tech-Konzerne und Großmächte die Welt unter sich aufteilen (C.H.Beck), February 2025
• Aladin El-Mafaalani, Sebastian Kurtenbach & Klaus Peter Strohmeier, Kinder – Minderheit ohne Schutz. Aufwachsen in der alternden Gesellschaft (Kiepenheuer & Witsch), January 2025
• Franz-Stefan Gady, Die Rückkehr des Krieges. Warum wir wieder lernen müssen, mit Krieg umzugehen (Quadriga), October 2024
• Ines Geipel, Fabelland. Der Osten, der Westen, der Zorn und das Glück (S. Fischer), August 2024
• Martina Heßler, Sisyphos im Maschinenraum. Eine Geschichte der Fehlbarkeit von Mensch und Technologie (C.H.Beck), February 2025
• Walburga Hülk, Victor Hugo. Jahrhundertmensch (Matthes & Seitz Berlin), November 2024
• Bernhard Kegel, Mit Pflanzen die Welt retten. Grüne Lösungen gegen den Klimawandel (DuMont), October 2024
• Ulli Lust, Die Frau als Mensch. Am Anfang der Geschichte (Reprodukt), February 2025

In addition to Patricia Rahemipour, the members of the jury are: Michael Hagner (ETH Zurich), Christiane Hoffmann (author), Michael Lemling (“Buchhandlung Lehmkuhl” bookshop), Manuela Lenzen (science journalist), Heike Schmoll (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) and Katrin Vohland (Natural History Museum Vienna).

Prize and sponsorship
The prize, worth a total of 42,500 euros, is awarded by the Stiftung Buchkultur und Leseförderung des Börsenvereins des Deutschen Buchhandels (Foundation for Book Culture and the Promotion of Reading of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association) to honour the original German-language edition of an outstanding non-fiction book that inspires social debate.

The Deutsche Bank Stiftung (Deutsche Bank Foundation) is the main supporter of the prize, which is also backed by the city of Hamburg and Frankfurter Buchmesse. 

From the eight shortlisted titles, the jury will select the best non-fiction book of the year, which will be announced in Hamburg on 17 June 2025. The winner will receive 25,000 euros, while the seven nominees will each be awarded 2,500 euros. The awards ceremony will take place in the Small Hall of the Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg.

Discover the nominees: conversations, films and blogger reviews
Together with its partners, the German Non-Fiction Prize provides its nominees with a platform. Reading enthusiasts and book lovers can discover the nominated titles and their authors through conversations, discussion panels and films at bookshops. More information about these events is available at https://www.deutscher-sachbuchpreis.de/en/events. 

Service for booksellers: the VLB-TIX title information system provides its own preview of the shortlisted titles to help booksellers plan their selection.

Service for media representatives: media representatives will have the opportunity to meet the nominees and learn more about their books at a Meet & Greet in Berlin on 13 May at 4:30 pm. More information will follow separately.

With the hashtag #sachbuchpreisbloggen, eight book bloggers will present the nominated titles in the coming weeks, and their reviews will be shared through the social media channels of the German Non-Fiction Prize.

Use the hashtag #DeutscherSachbuchpreis to follow the discussions about the German Non-Fiction Prize 2025.

Downloads 

Press photos of the jury and titles, as well as information about the nominated titles.

For more information about the German Non-Fiction Prize 2025, go to www.deutscher-sachbuchpreis.de.