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CONTACT: Robert Eggleton
Phone: 304.346.7907 (home) or 341-0511 (work)
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Local Author Awarded the Noble (Not Nobel) Prize

Praised or maligned, the Nobel Prize for Literature is always news. It selects the best from the world and therefore misses much of value. Carolyn Howard-Johnson, “Back to Literature” columnist for MyShelf.com, closes the gap (only slightly) with her an annual “Noble Prize for Literature.”

Over the last years the Nobel committee has recognized authors for their literary expertise but there has also been a trend toward awarding the prize for, as Los Angeles Times Staff Writer Tim Rutten says, “an author’s particular relevance to the moral moment in which the world finds itself.”

Howard-Johnson’s prize therefore concentrates on books that address these same issues. Her lists have included well-known authors who explore discrimination in their writing like Toni Morrison and Ralph Ellison, but she tries to concentrate on authors who have not been posted to bestseller lists or won major awards. Some past winners are LA's Leora G. Krygier and Randall Sylvis. Fifteen books were named as the best releases in 2006. One of the winners announced in the January issue of Myshelf was:

Robert Eggleton for his e-book, Rarity from the Hollow (Fatcat Press). Nominated by Evelyn Somers, an Editor of The Missouri Review.

Mr. Eggleton is best known for his investigative reports about children’s programs. Today, he is a therapist at the Prestera Mental Health Center in Charleston, West Virginia. Rarity from the Hollow is his debut novel. Author proceeds are donated to a child abuse prevention program operated by Children’s Home Society of West Virginia (Dennis Sutton, Executive Director, can be reached by telephone at 304.346.6644).

To read an excerpt or to learn more about Rarity from the Hollow visit:

www.fatcatpress.com , or

book reviews can be found at:

www.baryon-online.com/baryon103/rarho.html
http://www.missourireview.com/tmr-blog/?p=310

To learn more about Howard-Johnson’s "Back to Literature" column or to see the complete listing of winning publications visit:

http://myshelf.com/backtoliterature/column.htm.