Manhattan Book Group names Chaz Holesworth memoir a 2026 gold winner

Manhattan Book Group says Chaz Holesworth’s memoir, Life and How to Live it: Begin the Begin, won gold in the 2026 Manhattan Book Awards. The honor spotlights the book’s coming-of-age story and raises its profile in the independent publishing market.

Why it matters: - The gold award can help lift visibility for Chaz Holesworth’s memoir among readers, booksellers and publishers. - The recognition also adds credibility for a debut or early-series memoir in a crowded independent publishing field. - Manhattan Book Awards uses the honor to distinguish books it sees as top-tier in craft and impact.

What happened: - Manhattan Book Group announced that “Life and How to Live it: Begin the Begin” by Chaz Holesworth won gold in the 2026 Manhattan Book Awards. - The announcement came Aug. 3, 2026. - The award recognizes storytelling, originality and imaginative scope. - The book is the first volume in the Life and How to Live it memoir series.

The details: - Manhattan Book Awards is a year-round literary recognition program for books from independent and hybrid publishers worldwide. - An industry-experienced panel judges titles on narrative strength, originality, production quality and overall impact. - Gold honors go to books that exemplify excellence within their genre and show exceptional craft. - The memoir is set in 1980s Pennsylvania. - Holesworth writes about growing up with a heroin-addicted father and a devoted evangelical Christian mother. - The book describes a childhood shaped by poverty, roaches, rats, gangs and drugs in Philadelphia. - The story follows an isolated 13-year-old who sees a dead-end future without hope. - A random trip to an arcade becomes a turning point when a jukebox plays R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion.” - The memoir frames Holesworth’s journey as one of loss of faith, family conflict and self-discovery. - Manhattan Book Group describes Holesworth’s work as unfiltered and darkly funny. - Holesworth is a Philadelphia native who writes about survival, identity and unlearning shame. - Music is a recurring theme in his story and a key part of the memoir’s arc. - Holesworth lives outside Philadelphia with his wife and their dog. - He also advocates for workers’ and animals’ rights.

Between the lines: - The win gives Manhattan Book Group another way to showcase its awards platform as a discovery engine for independent authors. - The subject matter taps into familiar memoir themes, but the award suggests the judges saw the execution as standing out on craft, not just personal experience. - The book’s religious, social and cultural tensions may broaden its appeal beyond a standard coming-of-age memoir.

What's next: - Manhattan Book Group will likely continue promoting the title through its publishing and recognition channels. - The gold designation may support sales, reviews and wider readership for the memoir series. - Holesworth’s next installments in the Life and How to Live it series may draw added attention from the award win.

The bottom line: - The 2026 Manhattan Book Awards gold medal gives Life and How to Live it: Begin the Begin a timely endorsement and a stronger platform for readers to find it.