OK, well not exactly live, since they happened last night, but here's the report from our publisher, who was in black-tie attendance at the big show (she did not wear an actual black tie, you'll be relieved to know):
Well! The National Book Awards is arguably the 'biggest awards night' in the book industry. It's a big, black-tie dinner where the wine flows and lamb is served.
Fran Lebowitz, our host, is a very, very funny person. As always, quick, sharp and smart. An excellent MC.
On with the awards...
Michael Cunningham presented Joan Didion, who won the NBA for The Year of Magical Thinking only two years ago, an honorary medal for her lifetime of work. Didion remarked on the recent passing of icon Norman Mailer. She said "now he was someone who really knew what writing was for."
Ira Glass presented an honorary medal to Terry Gross. And then...the awards...
The crowd favorite, Sherman Alexie, won for young adult for his novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Alexie gave an emotional speech, reciting poetry and thanking writers such as Ezra Jack Keats.
Robert Hass, who won the prize for poetry for his collection, Time and Materials, also noted Mailer. It was at Mailer's house that Hass gave one of his first readings. "It was one of the most terrifying nights of my life.... (Mailer was) enormously generous to young writers."
In non-fiction, an open field with no clear front-runner, the award went to Tim Weiner for The Legacy of Ashes.
And no big surprise - the fiction award, presented by the
oh-so-amazing Francine Prose, went to Denis Johnson for Tree of Smoke. Johnson, in Iraq on assignment, was represented by his wife Cindy who read a lovely letter/statement that was sealed in an envelope marked "just in case."
Federal funding for Reading is Fundamental, the nonprofit organization that provides books and literacy materials to 16.5 million children age birth to 8 every year, has been cut in the 2009 federal budget. This is a huge loss. If we're to compete in a global economy, all our children must be given the best reading resources at the earliest age possible. To let your congress person and the president know how you feel, go here. I just clicked through and it took about 3 minutes to send an email. 
