The Kenyon Review has selected Elie Wiesel as the winner of the 2012 Kenyon Review Award for Literary Achievement.
Wiesel is the author of more than fifty books, most famous among them his haunting work Night. His writing deals with the moral imperative of all people to fight hatred, racism, and genocide. He is a Holocaust survivor and a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. Wiesel accepted the Kenyon Review award in New York City on Nov. 8.
Listen to a recording of Roger Rosenblatt’s remarks:
Download the audio
Listen to a recording of Wiesel’s Nov. 8th acceptance speech:
Download the audioListen to a short reading by Natalie Shapero and Elizabeth Lindsey Rogers, the current Kenyon Review Fellows:
Download the audioCoverage (with photos) of the 2012 event by Bloomberg News here.
The Kenyon Review Award for Literary Achievement is presented at a gala benefit dinner each year in New York City at the Four Seasons Restaurant. The prize honors careers of extraordinary literary achievement, recognizing writers whose influence and importance have shaped the American literary landscape. It celebrates writers for the courage of their vision, their unparalleled imagination, and for the beauty of their art.
This is an awards dinner unlike any other—the food and wine are exceptional, as has been the company—counting such luminaries as Roger Rosenblatt, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Gloria Vanderbilt, the late George Plimpton, and more among its guests. Past years have seen such corporations as Bloomberg, MacAndrews & Forbes, O’Melveny & Myers, LLP, and other distinguished companies sign on as sponsors.
Proceeds from the benefit dinner support The Kenyon Review. Funds are raised through table sponsorships, ticket sales, donations, and a live auction. The event insures the future legacy of one of America’s oldest and most respected literary journals. Further, the live auction includes the opportunity to support scholarships to KR’s celebrated summer programs—nurturing the next generations of writers and readers.
