Author Salman Rushdie appears at the Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany on Oct. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Salman Rushdie, a U.S. citizen for the past decade, is to receive a literary honor reserved for the elite of American writers — a National Book Award medal for lifetime achievement.
“Although I lived here for many, many years before I became a citizen and had a green card, citizenship suddenly made me feel a sense of being part of it (the U.S.) that was deeper than before. And I think there’s something similar about this (award),” said the 79-year-old Rushdie, a native of Mumbai (then Bombay) who emigrated to England in his teens and now lives in New York City with his wife and fellow author, Rachel Eliza Griffiths.
“I remember somebody told me that when Ray(mond) Carver got some major American award, he described himself as being ‘out there in literature now.’ And I thought, ‘Maybe I’m out there in American literature now,’” Rushdie added, speaking during a recent Zoom interview.
Longtime friend and fellow author (and Indian immigrant) Kiran Desai will present Rushdie his medal at this fall’s National Book Awards ceremony in Manhattan on Nov. 18, when prizes in five competitive categories will be handed out. Rushdie is the 39th winner of the award for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, presented by the nonprofit National Book Foundation. And he is just the fourth born outside of the U.S., following Canada native Saul Bellow, Isabel Allende of Chile and Swedish-born Art Spiegelman.
