National Book Awards
Let the Great World Spin, by Colum McCann, has been named the 2009 winner of The National Book Award for Fiction. The novel focuses on the lives of various New Yorkers on the day in 1974 when French trapeze artist Phillip Petit walked a tight rope between the World Trade Center towers. McCann, who has called his book an act of hope written in part as a response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, praised the generosity of American fiction and of the American people, and dedicated his prize to a fellow Irish-American writer, Frank McCourt. T.J. Stiles' biography of Cornelius Vanderbilt, The First Tycoon, was the Nonfiction winner and Keith Waldrop's Transcendental Studies: A Trilogy won for Poetry. The Young People's Award went to Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice, by Phillip Hoose, a true story of an early civil rights heroine, who joined Hoose on the stage. A special prize, voted on by the public, was given to The Complete Stories of Flannery O'Connor as the best of all fiction winners in the National Book Award's 60-year history. The 2009 Literarian Award for outstanding service to the American literary community went to Dave Eggers, author and co-founder of McSweeney’s, a literary journal. Eggers, who teaches writing to high school students, quoted some of his students’ enthusiastic comments on the subject of reading, including their total disdain for electronic readers!
Katie's Fabulous Fall Books of 2009
It is hard to remember a fall with so many exciting new books arriving every day! I usually limit this annual review to the top 10 books in each category, but I simply had to enlarge the Hardcover Fiction category to 20. Read on, and you’ll understand why! Whether you are shopping for yourself, or getting a head start on the holidays, please let us help! We wrap, ship and will help you choose the perfect gift for everyone on your list!! Thank you for supporting Village Books for 12+ amazing years!!
National Bookstore Day
We recently celebrated National Bookstore Day, a day devoted to the celebration of bookselling and the vibrant culture of bookstores! Village Books is fortunate to be located in a supportive community that values what we do and offer, and we so appreciate the loyal patronage of the community. But the realities of technology make it a continuing challenge to compete with booksellers on the internet and in the big-box stores. We think the unique and personal atmosphere we provide, the diversity of the titles we stock, the very special community we are a part of, and the unparalleled customer service we offer, set us apart. If you agree, please help us celebrate Village Books, and National Bookstore Day, throughout the holiday season by stopping by and showing your support!
Man Booker Prize Awarded
Hilary Mantel spent five years writing Wolf Hall, a historical novel about Henry VIII’s court centered on the king’s adviser, Thomas Cromwell. On Tuesday, October 6 her efforts were rewarded when she won the 41st annual Man Booker Prize, Britain’s most prestigious literary award. In accepting her award, Ms. Mantel remarked, “I had to interest the historians, I had to amuse the jaded palate of the critical establishment and most of all I had to capture the imagination of the general reader.” It would appear that she succeeded! In doing so she beat out others on the shortlist of finalists, including A.S. Byatt for The Children’s Book, J.M. Coetzee for Summertime, Adam Foulds for The Quickening Maze, Simon Mawer for The Glass Room and Sarah Waters for The Little Stranger. Previous winners of the Booker Prize include The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga in 2008 and The Gathering by Anne Enright in 2007. Wolf Hall will be released in the United States on October 13.
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