By Staff
Last month, The Michigan Center for the Book announced Christopher Paul Curtis as the winner of the 2005 Michigan Author Award.
Sponsored jointly by the Michigan Center for the Book and the Michigan Library Association, this annual award honors a Michigan writer for his or her contributions to literature, based on an outstanding published body of work.
He is the only writer to win the Newbery Medal and the Coretta Scott King Award - two of the most prestigious prizes in the field of children's literature - in the same year, Curtis has published three young-adult novels.
He is also the first African American to win the Newbery Medal since 1977.
Curtis received these awards for his second novel, "Bud, Not Buddy." His first book, "The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963," was an honor book for both the Newbery and Coretta Scott King awards. His third novel, the recently published "Bucking the Sarge," was included on the Library of Michigan's 2005 Michigan Notable Books list.
Originally from Flint, Curtis worked for years on the assembly line at General Motors' Fisher Body Plant before following his dream of writing.
A panel of judges representing Michigan librarians and the Michigan Center for the Book chooses the recipient of the Michigan Author Award, who receives $1,000, based on overall literary merit. The award will be presented at the Michigan Library Association Conference in Grand Rapids on Oct. 28, 2005.
The following are some of the newer books at the library by past Michigan Author Award winners and other Michigan authors.
The Vagabonds by Nicholas Delbanco
Siblings Joanna, Claire, and David Saperstone, now adults, return to their childhood home of Saratoga Springs, NY, to bury their widowed mother. There, they are astonished to learn that they've inherited a sizable fortune-a legacy bequeathed to their grandmother in 1916 by three camping buddies who call themselves "The Vagabonds," otherwise known as Henry Ford, Harry Firestone, and Thomas Edison.
Saul and Patsy by Charles Baxter
Saul and Patsy, both from the East Coast, meet in college, fall in love, and settle down to married life in the Midwest. There the lives of children – their own and others' – begin to invade their own lives. One of Saul's students, a deeply troubled sixteen-year-old boy, has become obsessed with Saul's life. And although Saul can't see it coming, the outcome of the boy's obsession will lead Saul to question everything he has always assumed about himself, his community, and his marriage.
Little Black Dress: A Peter Macklin Novel of Suspense by Loren D. Estleman
Peter Macklin was a hit man for a long time, but he has taken steps to distance himself from his tattooed past, like quitting the mob, moving away from Detroit, and marrying the gorgeous, intelligent Laurie. Now the man accustomed to killing people in cold blood must adjust to a sadistic ritual of early marriage - he must spend time with his eccentric mother-in-law. This event takes an unexpected turn when Macklin discovers that mom-in-law's boyfriend is a spotter for a gang of armed robbers.