Saturday, May 7, 2011

2011 Pulitzer Prizes Recently Announced

The Pulitzer Prize was established in 1917 and endowed by Joseph Pulitzer, the noted Hungarian immigrant newspaper publisher. The Pulitzer Prize categories included here are in the Arts and recognize distinguished works of fiction and nonfiction published in book form by an American author, preferably dealing with American life.

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction - A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Bennie Salazar, an aging punk rocker and record executive, and the beautiful Sasha, the troubled young woman he employs, never discover each other's pasts, but the reader does, in intimate detail, along with the secret lives of a host of other people whose paths intersect with theirs in the course of nearly 50 years. This novel is about time, about survival, about our private terrors, and what happens when we fail to rebound and it is told with both affection and intensity.


Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction - The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee

A magnificent and humane "bio" of cancer from its origins to the epic battle to cure, control, and conquer it. The book reads like a literary thriller with cancer as the protagonist.

Pulitzer Prize for Drama - "Clybourne Park" by Bruce Norris

This play is a dramatic imagining of events taking place before and after Lorraine Hansberry's classic "A Raisin in the Sun." Similarly, it looks at the long and unhappy relationship between race and real estate in Chicago.

Pulitzer Prize for History - The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery by Eric Foner

Master historian Foner describes, explains, and casts a new light on Lincoln's attitudes toward slavery as they evolved over time. Since this is the best account ever written on the subject, it should be an essential read for all Americans.



Pulitzer Prize for Biography - Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow

This celebrated biographer provides a richly nuanced portrait of the father of our nation, dashing forever the stereotype of a solid, unemotional man, and revealing an astute and surprising portrait of a canny political genius who knew how to inspire people.

Pulitzer Prize for Poetry - The Best of It: New and Selected Poems by Kay Ryan

This is a representative and retrospective collection of the current U.S. poet laureate which also contains new poems. This is excellent contemporary poetry that is sassy, smart and deep as it is hilarious.

Pulitzer Prize for Music - Zhou Long for Madame White Snake, premiered Feb. 26, 2010, by the Boston opera at the Cutler Majestic Theatre. The libretto is by Cerise Lim Jacobs.

This is a deeply expressive opera that draws on a Chinese folk tale to blend the musical tradition of the East and the West.


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