|
 |
Atticus Lish's debut novel, Preparation for the Next Life, and Bryan Stevenson's first book, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, were the fiction and nonfiction category winners respectively of the second annual Carla Furstenberg Cohen Literary Prize. The award was established last year by family and close friends of the beloved co-founder of Politics & Prose Bookstore, Washington, D.C. Cohen, who died in 2010, was known for her keen interest in new authors, many of whom found their first audiences through her bookstore. The winners are awarded $5,000, which will be presented May 16 during a ceremony at P&P.
"Each jury's choice reflects Carla's legacy: powerful and clear writing on subjects that we have to deal with now as a society," said David Cohen, Carla's husband and chairman of the board of the Carla Furstenberg Cohen Literary Prize. "Such writing has a power of its own.”
This year's fiction judges were Barbara Meade, Cohen's business partner of 25 years; P&P buyer Mark LaFramboise; and novelist Howard Norman. Nonfiction judges were NPR producer Darcy Bacon; America's Promise president and CEO John Gomperts; and American Press Institute executive director and author Tom Rosenstiel. The jurors, who were chosen by a board made up of Cohen's friends and family, represent readers who have been part of the P&P community and reflect the values that Carla Cohen brought to the endeavor.