Five fiction authors are the finalists for the 2011 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, for which the winner receives $100,000 and the first runner-up gets $25,000.
The finalists represent important emerging voices in Jewish life and thought. They are Allison Amend (author of “Stations West”), Nadia Kalman (“The Cosmopolitans”), Julie Orringer (“The Invisible Bridge”), Austin Ratner (“The Jump Artist”) and Joseph Skibell (“A Curable Romantic”).
Established in 2006, the Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature honors the contribution of contemporary writers in the exploration and transmission of Jewish values. The prize is intended to encourage and promote writing of Jewish interest. Fiction and nonfiction books are considered in alternate years.
On March 15, the finalists will meet with the judges in New York, after which the winners will be announced. The award ceremony will be held in New York City on May 31. The prize is administered under the auspices of the Jewish Book Council. — jta