Syracuse -- It's the day after the 2013 National Book Awards ceremony and the party is over. Syracuse University professor and short story writer George Saunders was a finalist in the fiction category for "Tenth of December." James McBride took this year's honors in fiction for "The Good Lord Bird" at Wednesday's ceremony in New York City.
"The McBride book is really wonderful and he's a sweetheart," wrote Saunders in an email.
Of the two days of NBA events, Saunders wrote: "Honestly it was a riot _ got to visit with Doctorow & Toni Morrison & my wife & I stayed & danced _ a great 2-day party. No complaints."
Book lovers found Saunders quite entertaining at the National Book Awards finalists reading on Tuesday.
Beyond the book set, Saunders catapulted to fame with his May convocation address at SU. He encouraged new graduates to practice being kind. The speech was posted on several websites and Saunders made an appearance on TV's "Good Morning America." Random House will publish an expanded version of the address and title it "Congratulations, by the Way" in 2014.
One book reviewer has a prediction about Saunders' short story collection. In her review of "Tenth of December," Maureen Corrigan, of NPR, wrote: "Saunders' short stories have it all -- the flexibility of language, the social criticism, the moral ambition, the entertaining dark humor. Check back with me at the end of 2013; if his collection isn't in this year's top 10, it will really have been an extraordinary year for books."
An excerpt of "Tenth of December" is posted on publisher Random House's website.
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