Congratulations to author Luis Alberto Urrea, named the third recipient of the Paul Engle Prize. A Tucson favorite and a champion of TUSD's Mexican-American studies program, will receive a work of art and $10,000. Teresita would be proud.

H/T Iowa City Press Citizen:

Author Luis Alberto Urrea has been named the third recipient of the Paul Engle Prize, presented by the Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature organization.

The award honors an individual who, like Paul Engle, represents a pioneering spirit in the world of literature through writing, editing, publishing or teaching, and whose active participation in the larger issues of the day has contributed to the betterment of the world through the literary arts.

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Urrea, a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame, is a prolific and acclaimed writer who uses his dual-culture life experiences to explore greater themes of love, loss and triumph. Urrea’s novels include “The Hummingbird’s Daughter,” its follow up, “Queen of America,” and the best-selling “Into the Beautiful North,” which imagines a small town in Mexico where all the men have immigrated to the U.S.