Fil-Am Author Wins $25,000 PEN/Bingham Prize

Mia Alvar (Source: Twitter.com)

Filipino American author Mia Alvar, whose first book of short stories In the Country has enjoyed critical and popular acclaim, was named winner of the$25,000 2016 PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction. In The Country comprises nine stories on the Filipino diaspora. "It is rare to find a debut of such depth and breadth, work singing with the grace of a thousand doomed lifetimes compressed into stories both luminous and empathic, populated by memorable characters facing such keenly felt challenges," judgesHelon Habila, Elizabeth McCracken, Edie Meidav, and Jess Row wrote in their citation for the award. For more information, visit pen.org.