A renowned memoir and declaration penned by Omar El Akkad, a Canadian writer and journalist, has been named as one of the finalists for the prestigious National Book Award in the United States. The annual literary prize, valued at $10,000 USD (approximately 13,954.49 Canadian dollars), is bestowed by the National Book Foundation to honor exceptional works across various genres like fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translated literature, and young people’s literature.
Titled “One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This,” this publication signifies the nonfiction debut of Omar El Akkad, an Egyptian-Canadian writer and journalist. The book delves into El Akkad’s reflections on truth, justice, privilege, and morality, expanding on a poignant statement he made on social media following the Gaza bombardment in the fall of 2023.
El Akkad, residing in Portland, Oregon, is an accomplished author and journalist. His novel “American War” was championed on Canada Reads in 2018 by actor Tahmoh Penikett. Additionally, his work “What Strange Paradise” clinched the 2021 Scotiabank Giller Prize and was defended on Canada Reads in 2022 by Tareq Hadhad.
The National Book Foundation recently revealed the finalists across five competitive categories, with Megha Majumdar securing a spot as a fiction finalist for “A Guardian and a Thief,” her latest novel following the success of “A Burning” in 2020. Other fiction contenders include Rabhi Alameddine with “The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother),” Karen Russell with “The Antidote,” Ethan Rutherford with “North Sun,” and Bryan Washington with “Palaver.”
These fiction authors transport readers to diverse settings, ranging from future India (Majumdar) and 1930s Nebraska (Russell) to present-day Tokyo (Washington). In the nonfiction category, Yiyun Li’s “Things in Nature Merely Grow,” a poignant narrative on losing her two sons to suicide, competes alongside Julia Ioffe’s feminist historical account of Russia in “Motherland,” Claudia Rowe’s “Wards of the State,” and Jordan Thomas’ “When It All Burns.”
The winners will be announced during a gala dinner on November 19 in downtown Manhattan, where distinguished fiction writer George Saunders and author-publisher Roxane Gay will receive honorary accolades.
