Night of the Living Rez

Winner of the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize
Winner of the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize
Winner of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Sue Kaufman Prize
Shortlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize 2026

A boy unearths a jar that holds an old curse, which sets into motion his family’s unravelling; a man, while trying to swindle some pot from a dealer, discovers a friend passed out in the woods, his hair frozen into the snow; and two friends, inspired by Antiques Roadshow, attempt to rob the tribal museum for valuable root clubs. Night of the Living Rez is an unforgettable portrayal of Indigenous community, whose arrival heralded a stand-out talent in contemporary fiction.

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Morgan Talty is a citizen of the Penobscot Indian Nation and the author of the critically acclaimed novel Fire Exit (USA: Tin House Books, 2024; UK: And Other Stories), finalist for the 2025 Joyce Carol Oates Prize, the 2024 Maya Angelou Award, and the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and an Economist, Harper’s Bazaar, New Yorker, and TIME book of the year. His linked story collection Night of the Living Rez (USA: Tin House Books, 2022; UK: And Other Stories, 2025) won the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize and the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize for Best First Book. His writing has appeared in Granta, The Guardian, Esquire, and People, and he was selected by Karen Russell as a National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 Honoree. He is the founder and director of Talty Literary Solutions, Inc., a literary and educational organization focused on storytelling, mentorship, and cultural sovereignty. He lives in Levant, Maine.