Nimitz at War: Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo by Craig L. Symonds (Oxford University Press) has won the $50,000 Gilder Lehrman Military History Prize, sponsored by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in recognition of the best eligible English-language book in the field of American military history, distinguished by its scholarship, its contribution to the literature, and its appeal to the broadest possible general reading public.
Jury chair Lorien Foote wrote, "Well-written and engaging, [Nimitz at War] gives scholars their first full portrait of Nimitz in over fifty years, and general readers an easy-to-understand overview of the leadership qualities and bold decisions of the commander vital to U.S. success in the Pacific."
James G. Basker, president and CEO of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, who was part of the board that made the final choice, said, "Symonds' biography offers a fresh and engaging perspective on the Pacific Theater of World War II. Nimitz at War is a crowning achievement from one of the nation’s premier military historians."
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Mara Faye Lethem has won the 2024 Lewis Galantière Award for her translation from the Catalan of When I Sing, Mountains Dance by Irene Solà (Graywolf Press, 2022).
Bestowed by the American Translators Association in even-numbered years, the Lewis Galantière Award honors a distinguished, book-length translation from any language, save German, into English (the Ungar German Translation Award, which is bestowed in odd-numbered years, exists to honor German to English translations).
The ATA called Lethem's translation "vivid and palpable. Through the voices of many different speakers, which Lethem masterfully expresses in English, this slim novel becomes increasingly expansive, almost epic, conveying a deep sense of Catalan culture and history through the present day."
This year, there were 69 nominations for the award across 19 languages. Every nomination was read by three professional translators and ATA members, at least one of whom knew the source language and compared translated passages to the original. A jury of ATA members then selected the winner based on those evaluations.
The award is named for Lewis Galantière, a founding member of the ATA who translated from the French, and has been awarded since 1984. It was awarded at the ATA's annual conference in Portland, Ore., which ran from October 30-November 2.