Yamashita Awarded National Book Foundation Medal

Karen Tei Yamashita will receive the National Book Foundation‘s 2021 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, to be presented during the annual National Book Award ceremony at Cipriani Wall Street on November 17. David Steinberger, chair of the NBF Board of Directors, said,

A bold and groundbreaking writer, Yamashita’s deeply creative body of work has made an enduring impact on our literary landscape. Whether it’s an evocative exploration of cities, collaborative performance productions, or connecting the plots of Jane Austen to Japanese American life, her work reaches across time, country, and culture to offer readers a powerfully complex guide to our world.

The award was created in 1988 “to recognize a lifetime of literary achievement,” and includes a $10,000 prize and a solid brass medal. Nominations are made by National Book Awards winners, finalists, judges, and other literary professionals, with the final selection made by the National Book Foundation’s Board of Directors. Yamashita is the 34th recipient. Previous recipients include Isabel Allende, Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Toni Morrison.

For more information, see the National Book Foundation website.

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