Imagine getting that phone call that tells you your book is in the running for a National Book Award.
And then imagine getting a follow-up phone call saying, "Um....never mind."
Lauren Myracle's young adult novel, "Shine," was announced last week as a finalist, but as it turns out now that announcment was made in error. When the judges reported their list of finalists, by telephone, to the National Book Foundation, someone misheard and wrote down "Shine" instead of the actual finalist, "Chime."
And so the wrong book was announced. The right book, "Chime," by Franny Billingsley, was added an hour or so later when judges realized the error.
And from there, the cumbersome mess just grew messier.
First, it was announced that the Young Adult category would go with six finalists instead of the usual five. But later, Myracle was reportedly asked to withdraw her book from consideration to preserve the integrity of the competition. She did so today.
The Huffington Post reports that Myracle said in a statement, "I was over the moon last week after receiving the call telling me that 'Shine' was a finalist for the award. I was later informed that Shine had been included in error, but would remain on the list based on its merits. However, on Friday I was asked to withdraw by the National Book Foundation (NBF) to preserve the integrity of the award and the judges' work, and I have agreed to do so."
She also asked that the National Book Foundation make a donation to the Matthew Shepard Foundation, and the NBF has done so.
