Historian, journalist wins $100K military lit prize
Last Updated: Monday, June 21, 2010 | 3:28 PM ET
CBC News
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist Rick Atkinson has won a $100,000 US prize for his military writing.
Atkinson, a journalist who earned Pulitzer Prizes both for his reporting as well as his historical tomes, was named on Monday the 2010 recipient of the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing.
James N. Pritzker, the prize's founder and president of the Pritzker Military Library and Tawani Foundation, praised Atkinson in a statement.
"Throughout his multifaceted career, Rick has given readers accurate and frank analysis of military history from World War II to the present conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan," Pritzker said.
"His independent voice, tempered with respect and compassion, has earned high esteem not only from scholars, journalists, and civilians on the home front but also the members of the armed forces about whom he writes."
Atkinson, who will receive the honour in a gala in October, called it "simply thrilling" to win an award that "recognizes the literary aspirations of vivid military history. I'm grateful, and delighted."
His books include The Long Gray Line, Crusade: The Untold Story of the Persian Gulf War and In the Company of Soldiers: A Chronicle of Combat.
He is currently working on the third book in his eventual trilogy about the liberation of Europe during the Second World War. The forthcoming title follows his earlier books An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943 and The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944.
Past winners of the Pritzker Award include American Civil War historian James McPherson and Allan Millett, a specialist on the Korean War and American military policy and institutions.
With files from The Associated PressShare Tools
- Glee's 'unintentional' tribute to Whitney Houstonby Arts Online Feb. 15, 2012 5:40 PM When Glee included a rendition of I Will Always Love You, sung by Amber Riley (Mercedes), in its Valentine's Day episode, it was pure serendipity. The performance had been planned as one of several songs celebrating love and, after Whitney Houston's untimely death Saturday, the network added a line of tribute to the woman who made the song famous.
Top News Headlines
- Tories move to curb 'bogus' refugees
- The Conservative government is poised to change the refugee system yet again in an attempt to deter what it considers "bogus" claimants, CBC News has learned. more »
- Children of immigrants challenged at school, home
- By 2016, foreign-born youth and Canadian-born youth from immigrant families will make up a quarter of the country's population, according to predictions by the Canadian Council on Social Development. As their numbers grow, more attention is being paid to their successes and failures. more »
- 2 NDP MPs back final Commons vote to kill gun registry
- Two NDP MPs broke party ranks to vote with the government in the final House of Commons vote on scrapping the long-gun registry. more »
- B.C. house party trial hears from tearful teens
- Two teenagers cried as they testified at the trial of a B.C. woman who was charged after a teen died while her son was hosting a party at her house in 2008. more »
Latest Arts & Entertainment News Headlines
- Hudson Bay Co. archives includes film treasure trove
- A Hudson's Bay Co. collection of films from the early 20th century showing fur-trading life in the North has been transferred back to Winnipeg and is to be screened at the Archives of Manitoba. more »
- Missing Karel Appel works found in British warehouse
- More than 400 works by Dutch artist Karel Appel have been discovered in a British storage warehouse a decade after they went missing. more »
- Montreal museum offers reward after artifact theft
- Quebec police are seeking the recovery of two ancient artifacts stolen from the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts last fall, with a substantial reward offered. more »
- The Artist, Hugo spotlight film preservation
- While The Artist and Hugo are showered with attention ahead of the upcoming Academy Awards, cinema experts say the movies are also shining a much-needed spotlight on the issue of film preservation. more »
Q Blog
The great monogamy debate Feb. 15, 2012 1:41 PM Is it time to start taking alternatives to monogamy seriously in our culture? Listen in to the Q debate and let us know what you think.
CBC Books
- Choosing a Valentine's Day gift for the book lover in your life Feb. 15, 2012 2:45 PM CBC Books' Erin Balser and her partner, Matt Elliott, on the challenge of giving your sweetheart a book for Valentine's Day.
- Drummond report on Ontario calls for cutbacks
- Barefoot girl's icy trek not blamed on babysitter
- 2 NDP MPs back final Commons vote to kill gun registry
- Immigrants the proudest Canadians, poll suggests
- Honduras prison fire kills hundreds
- Bodyguard hired for bully victim in Fredericton
- Canadian housing market cools in January
- Legalize pot, say former B.C. attorneys general
- Russians' abusive plane tirade to cost them $19K
