The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is one of the most highly sought literary awards in the United States. Since its inception in 1917, 86 writers have won the prize—among them, some of the nation’s greatest talents. Yet not all has gone smoothly. Here are five instances where the awarding (or withholding) of the Pulitzer has erupted in controversy.
American novelist and short story writer, Bernard Malamud was born on April 26, 1914 in New York. His parents were Russo-Jewish immigrants with very little knowledge of the English Language. Malamud had one younger brother, Eugene and the boys experienced quite a poor childhood. Escaping realities, Bernard would often read stories and watch Charlie Chaplain films, which would later influence his style of writing. Malamud always had an appreciation for teaching and the learning process. Despite his mother’s death in his early teen years, Malamud continued on through high school and graduated with a Bachelors of Arts from the City College of New York. He later received his Master’s Degree from Columbia University while teaching high-school night classes.
John Updike is proof that quality doesn’t have to be sacrificed for quantity. This highly accomplished author averaged at least one book a year during his career, while also composing poetry, short stories, and essays. He is one of three fiction authors to win more than one Pulitzer Prize. Both novels to receive the prize were a part of his famous Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom series.
Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, Edith Warton was born on January 24, 1862 into the family of George Frederic Jones and Lucretia Stevens Rhinelander in New York City. Her family was incredibly wealthy and was said to have been the family upon which the phrase “Keeping up with the Joneses” originated. As a result of this wealth, Wharton enjoyed a privileged upbringing and traveled extensively throughout Europe a member of Society at every turn, this led to a writing style which through its use of dramatic irony was supremely critical of the upper class and its way of life.
On June 3, 1936, Larry McMurtry was born in Archer City, Texas. Famous for his novels about the American West, McMurtry has had a rich career as a writer--and as a bookseller. Though he's since retired from both careers, McMurtry has made an indelible mark on the book collecting world.
Born February 27, 1902 in Salinas, California, John Steinbeck truly made a mark on America as a writer. He won the Pulitzer Prize for The Grapes of Wrath (1939), a novel that captured the daily struggles and strife of the Great Depression. Steinbeck wrote novels, travelogues, short story collections, and non-fiction, and his exceptional contributions to literature earned him the 1962 Nobel Prize. Steinbeck and his work have long fascinated collectors.
Born in Newark, New Jersey on March 19, 1933, Philip Roth began publishing short stories in 1956. His first book, Goodbye, Columbus (1959) won the National Book Award, and since then he has published more than 22 books. In the 1990s, Roth won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Patrimony (1991), the PEN/Faulkner Award for Operation Shylock (1993), and the National Book Award for Sabbath's Theater (1995). American Pastoral (1997) and I Married a Communist (1998), the first two volumes of Roth's trilogy, received the Pulitzer Prize and many others.
