Thomas L. Friedman

By Laurie Hertzel

"Peace," a Richard Bausch novel set in Italy during World War II, and "Crime So Monstrous: Face to Face with Modern Day Slavery" by Benjamin Skinner are the two winners of this year's Dayton Literary Peace Prize.

Runners-up are "Say You're One of Them," by Uwem Akpan, a collection of short stories recently named an Oprah book, and "Hot, Flat and Crowded," by Thomas Friedman.

Skinner announced that he will donate his $10,000 honorarium to Free The Slaves, the American wing of Anti-Slavery International, the world's oldest human rights organization.

The Dayton Literary Peace Prize honors writers whose work fosters peace, justice, and global understanding. Previous winners include Elie Wiesel and Studs Terkel.

The awards will be given at a ceremony in November.