Vanderbilt biography wins National Book Award

NEW YORK -- "The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt," by T.J. Stiles, won the $10,000 National Book Award for Nonfiction on Wednesday night at a dinner at a restaurant on Wall Street.

Stiles, who worked in publishing before becoming a writer, began his speech by thanking the people behind the scenes who helped produce his book: the editorial assistants, production managers, indexers, publicists, receptionists, salespeople, mailroom staff, librarians and book reviewers -- "Yes, even the book reviewers," he said.

The black-tie ceremony was a benefit for the National Book Foundation, which promotes writing and literacy. The host was comedian and author Andy Borowitz, who bemoaned the lack of an award for his own latest book, "Who Moved My Soap? The CEO's Guide to Surviving Prison: The Bernie Madoff Edition."

The fiction prize went to Irish-born writer Colum McCann for "Let the Great World Spin," a novel about New York in the 1970s.

"As someone who's come from Ireland, I am extraordinarily honored," McCann said. "It seems to me that American literature is able to embrace the other."

The award for Young People's Literature went to Phillip Hoose for "Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice," the true story of an African American teenager who challenged segregation in 1950s Alabama. Colvin accompanied her biographer to the podium.

"My job in this book was to pull someone who was about to disappear under history's rug out from there," Hoose said. "She did what Rosa Parks did a year before Rosa Parks did it."

Keith Waldrop won the poetry award for "Transcendental Studies: A Trilogy."

Gore Vidal, author of such novels as "Myra Breckinridge" and "Burr," as well as the award-winning collection "United States: Essays 1952-1992," received an award for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. Actress Joanne Woodward, his longtime friend, presented the award.

The Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community was presented to Dave Eggers. In addition to his work as a writer ("A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," "Zeitoun"), Eggers is the co-founder of the independent publisher McSweeney's and of 826 Valencia, a nonprofit writing and tutoring center for young people.

Borowitz ended the ceremony by inviting everyone to come back next year. The early favorite for the fiction award, he joked, is Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue."