Literature: Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction Awarded to E.L. Doctorow
From the Library of Congress:
Librarian of Congress James H. Billington has announced that E. L. Doctorow, author of such critically acclaimed novels as “Ragtime,” “World’s Fair,” “Billy Bathgate,” “The March” and his current novel, “Andrew’s Brain,” will receive the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction during the 2014 Library of Congress National Book Festival, Aug. 30.
“E. L. Doctorow is our very own Charles Dickens, summoning a distinctly American place and time, channeling our myriad voices,” said Billington. “Each book is a vivid canvas, filled with color and drama. In each, he chronicles an entirely different world.”
The Prize for American Fiction ceremony will be held on Saturday, Aug. 30, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., the National Book Festival’s new location.
“I was a child who read everything I could get my hands on,” Doctorow said. Eventually, I asked of a story not only what was to happen next, but how is this done? How am I made to live from words on a page? And so I became a writer myself.
“But is there a novelist who doesn’t live with self-doubt? The high honor of the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction confers a blessed moment of peace and resolution.”
Doctorow is the second winner of the award. Last year, the prize went to Don DeLillo.
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Billington chose Doctorow based on the recommendation of a panel of distinguished authors and prominent literary critics.
Read the Complete Announcement Including a Brief Bio of Doctorow
See Also: Review the WorldCat Identities Page For E.L. Doctorow
It includes:
- Publication Timeline
- A List of the Most Widely Held Works by Doctorow
- List of the Most Widely Held Works About Doctorow
- Alternative Names
- Associated Subjects Word Cloud

About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.