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Doctorow nabs second PEN/Faulkner prize
US author E. L. Doctorow wins the 2006 PEN/Faulkner award for literature for The March.
US author E. L. Doctorow won the 2006 PEN/Faulkner award for literature for his historical US Civil War novel
The March
, the PEN/Faulkner Foundation announced Tuesday.
It was the second time the much-lauded Doctorow, 75, captured the prestigious prize, having won it in 1990 for Billy Bathgate.
Named for writer William Faulkner and associated with the literary and human rights group PEN, the award is one of the few decided by a jury of fellow authors.
The winner gets not just $15,000, but also the honour of being singled out by other respected writers for his talent.
The March portrays the legendary 1864-65 brutal rampage of General William Tecumseh Sherman and his Yankee troops through southern states in a mosaic of the lives of the many people involved and affected.
"Doctorow here appears not so much a re-constructor of history as a visionary who seeks in time past occasions for poetry," author John Updike wrote in a review for the New Yorker.
Doctorow, 75, is also known for The Book of Daniel (1971) and Ragtime (1975), which established his reputation as a historical writer able to bridge popular and literary genres.
The award will be officially given at a Washington gala dinner in May featuring readings by famous authors.
Last year's winner was Chinese writer Ha Jin, for War Trash.
