The following is a guest post by Helen White Cauthen, Communications Specialist, Office of Development, University of Alabama School of Law.
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the publication of To Kill A Mockingbird, and to honor former Alabama law student and author Harper Lee, The University of Alabama School of Law and the ABA Journal partnered together to create the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction in 2010.
The prize, authorized by Ms. Lee, is given annually to a book-length work of fiction published in the preceding year that best illuminates the role of lawyers in society and their power to effect change. Past winners include The Confession by John Grisham, The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly, and Havana Requiem by Paul Goldstein. The 2014 prize will be awarded in Washington, D.C., on August 28, in conjunction with the Library of Congress National Book Festival. The winner will receive a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird signed by Harper Lee.
The 2014 Harper Lee Prize Selection Committee includes sports columnist, ESPN panelist and University of Maryland professor, Kevin Blackistone; New York Times bestselling author, Fannie Flagg; partner at Kornstein, Veisz, Wexler & Pollard and former Harper Lee panelist, Dan Kornstein; journalist, lawyer and Supreme Court correspondent for the New York Times, Adam Liptak; and journalist, author and former Harper Lee panelist, Marianne Szegedy-Maszak.
Deadline for entries: April 7, 2014
Visit www.HarperLeePrize.com for more information.
Comments (3)
I would like to nominate “Sycamore Row” by John Grisham for the Harper Lee Award for Legal Fiction. As his 22nd novel, it was very satisfying to see Jake Brigance back in court in Canton, Mississippi, just 3 years after defending Carl Lee Hailey in Mr. Grisham`s first novel, À Time to Kill`.
Thanks very much for your comment. You will need to visit the Harper Lee Prize website to nominate titles. The website is available at: http://www.law.ua.edu/programs/harper-lee-prize-for-legal-fiction/ .
“Sycamore Row” by John Grisham has been submitted for the prize. Be sure to keep an eye out for the public vote on ABAJournal.com where you can vote for your favorite.