| 2024 | Thunderclap | Rathbones Folio Prize source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Literature | |
| 2024 | Thunderclap | Women's Prize for Fiction source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Non-Fiction | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap | TIME Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · 100 Must-Read | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap | The New Yorker Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Also Recommended | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap | The Guardian Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Biography and memoir | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap | The Irish Times Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Books of the Year | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life & Sudden Death | Chicago Public Library Best of the Best source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Must-Read Books: Biography & Memoir | |
| 2023 | Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life & Sudden Death | Chicago Public Library Best of the Best source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Our Favorite Books | |
| 2020 | On Chapel Sands | Rathbones Folio Prize source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Literature | |
| 2019 | Five Days Gone: The Mystery of My Mother's Disappearance as a Child | National Book Critics Circle Awards source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Finalist · Autobiography | |
| 2019 | On Chapel Sands: My Mother and Other Missing Persons | Costa Book Awards source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Biography | |
| 2019 | On Chapel Sands: My Mother and Other Missing Persons | Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Non-Fiction | |
| 2019 | On Chapel Sands | The Telegraph Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Best Books | |
| 2019 | On Chapel Sands | The Guardian Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Biography and memoir | |
| 2019 | Five Days Gone: The Mystery Of My Mother's Disappearance As A Child | NPR Books We Love source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Books We Love | |
| 2019 | Five Days Gone: The Mystery of My Mother's Disappearance as a Child | The Boston Globe Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Nonfiction | |
| 2017 | The Vanishing Man | Rathbones Folio Prize source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Shortlist · Literature | |
| 2016 | The Vanishing Man: In Pursuit of Velazquez | James Tait Black Prizes source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Winner · Biography | |
| 2016 | The Vanishing Man | Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Longlist · Non-Fiction | |
| 2016 | The Vanishing Man | The Guardian Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Biography and memoir | |
| 2016 | The Vanishing Velázquez: A 19th Century Bookseller's Obsession With A Lost Masterpiece | NPR Books We Love source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Books We Love | |
| 2016 | The Vanishing Velazquez | The Wall Street Journal Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Nonfiction | |
| 2009 | A Face to the World: On Self-Portraits | Financial Times Best Books of the Year source ↗ (opens in a new tab) | Selection · Art & Photography | |