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“Dreihundert Männer” is the German Non-Fiction Book of the Year 2026

The winner of the German Non-Fiction Prize 2026 is Konstantin Richter, for his work “Dreihundert Männer” (“Three Hundred Men”) (Suhrkamp Verlag).

Statement from the jury:

“To this day, the concept of ‘Germany Inc.’ continues to shape our conception of ourselves as a successful economic nation. In his history of the German economy from the early days of industrialisation to the present, Konstantin Richter shows just how little the ideas and assumptions associated with this model still correspond to contemporary realities. Through a skilfully constructed narrative, he reveals how the network of the ‘300 men’ shaped Germany on a personal, economic and political level. One thing becomes clear: this came at a cost. Nostalgia offers no way forward. Konstantin Richter exposes what lies behind the abstract notion of the ‘German economy’, providing a foundation for drawing the right conclusions for the future.”

The jury of the German Non-Fiction Prize 2026:

• Sibylle Anderl (Die Zeit)
• Maja Brankovic (Wirtschaftswoche)
• Manuela Lenzen (science journalist)
• Pascal Mathéus (“Buchhandlung Wassermann” bookshop, Hamburg-Blankenese), jury spokesperson
• Patricia Rahemipour (Institute for Museum Research, Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation)
• Stefan Spiegel (funk / Marmota Maps)
• Katrin Vohland (Natural History Museum Vienna)

The following books were also nominated for the award:

• Heike Behrend: Gespräche mit einem Toten. Gustaf Nagel, Prophet vom Arendsee (Matthes & Seitz Berlin), August 2025
• Florence Gaub: Szenario. Die Zukunft steht auf dem Spiel (dtv), November 2025
• Tilmann Lahme: Thomas Mann. Ein Leben (dtv), May 2025
• Irina Scherbakowa: Der Schlüssel würde noch passen. Moskauer Erinnerungen (Droemer) November 2025
• Bettina Schöne-Seifert: Leben, Körper, Tod. Zwölf aktuelle Kontroversen der Medizinethik (Wallstein), October 2025
• Roberto Simanowski: Sprachmaschinen. Eine Philosophie der künstlichen Intelligenz (C.H.Beck), October 2025
• Ronen Steinke: Meinungsfreiheit. Wie Polizei und Justiz unser Grundrecht einschränken – und wie wir es verteidigen (Berlin Verlag), February 2026

About the German Non-Fiction Prize

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) awards the German Non-Fiction Prize in recognition of the non-fiction book of the year, an original German-language edition of an outstanding work of non-fiction 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. The cultural programme “aspekte” on ZDF and Deutschlandfunk Kultur are media partners of the prize.