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2026 Parnassus Prize Shortlist

Posted on by Martin Cothran

The Parnassus Prize is Memoria College’s annual literary award given to a recent book that best contributes to the cultivation of the Western liberal arts tradition. Memoria College has released its shortlist of books being considered for the 2026 prize:

  • Galahad and the Grail, by Malcolm Guite
  • Why Literature Still Matters, by Jason M. Baxter
  • Christian Paideia, vol. 1: A History of Christian Education to 500 AD, by Brian Welter
  • Guide to the Science of Reading: Translating Research to Reignite Joy and Meaning in the Classroom, by Doug Lemov
  • Truth Matters, by Robert George and Cornell West (2025)
  • Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education, by Louis Markos (2025)
Martin Cothran

Martin Cothran is Provost of Memoria College, editor of The Classical Teacher magazine and author of Memoria Press’ Traditional Logic, Material Logic, and Classical Rhetoric. Martin has taught Latin, Logic, and Rhetoric at Highlands Latin School in Louisville, Kentucky, and is widely quoted on education and other public policy issues in Reuters News Service, USA Today, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. The Lexington Herald-Leader called him “the master of the thirty-second sound bite,” and the Associated Press has described him as “articulate and relentless.” A frequent guest on Kentucky Educational Television’s “Kentucky Tonight,” a statewide weekly public affairs program.

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