Winners of the Oregon Book Awards sponsored by the Portland nonprofit Literary Arts were announced April 30, 2018, in a ceremony hosted by author Renee Watson, a Portland native, at Gerding Theater at the Armory, 128 N.W. 11th Ave. in Portland.
The Ken Kesey Award for Fiction went to Omar El Akkad, for “American War,” a dystopian imagining of an America once again split between
North and South. The Portland author expressed “absolute shock” at his win due to “having made the very bad decision of reading all the nominated books in this category.” A lifelong migrant, he said he often feels he doesn’t belong anywhere, but Literary Arts has given him the hope “that there are these people with whom I can fail to belong together.”
American War by Omar El Akkad wins 2018 Oregon Book Award for fiction.
North and South. The Portland author expressed “absolute shock” at his win due to “having made the very bad decision of reading all the nominated books in this category.” A lifelong migrant, he said he often feels he doesn’t belong anywhere, but Literary Arts has given him the hope “that there are these people with whom I can fail to belong together.”
The Oregon Book Awards honor the state’s finest accomplishments by Oregon writers who work in genres of poetry, fiction, graphic literature, drama, literary nonfiction, and literature for young readers. Oregon Literary Fellowships provide financial support to Oregon’s emerging and established writers and publishers.
For a full list of 2018 OREGON BOOK AWARD WINNERS, see Oregon Live
