Cynthia Carr and Lucy Hughes-Hallett are the winners of the 2025 Plutarch Award, given annually in recognition of outstanding work in the field of biography, the Biographers International Organization (BIO) announced in a news release.
Carr was named co-winner of the prize for Candy Darling: Dreamer, Icon, Superstar, her biography of the transgender actor who worked with artist Andy Warhol in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In a starred review, a critic for Kirkus wrote of the book, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for biography, “Carr resurrects a trans icon whose life, artistry, and struggle speak directly to our moment.”
Hughes-Hallett was also named a co-winner for The Scapegoat: The Brilliant Brief Life of the Duke of Buckingham, the life story of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, the English courtier and lover of King James I. The book also received a starred review from Kirkus, with a critic writing, “Great men and politics history at its best.”
Ruth Franklin, the award committee chair for BIO, said in a statement, “As works of biography, these books are so different that they are almost impossible to compare. We thought it was worth acknowledging both: The Scapegoat for its innovative structure and engaging, intelligent style; and Candy Darling for its emotional pull and sensitive handling of its subject."
The Plutarch Award was established in 2013. Previous winners include The Passage of Power: The Years of Lyndon Johnson by Robert A. Caro; Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Caroline Fraser; and Anansi’s Gold: The Man Who Looted the West, Outfoxed Washington, and Swindled the World by Yepoka Yeebo.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
