Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing
1 appearances
-
Edition 24 (2014) Nominee
Benjamin Moser
ベンジャミン・モーザー
Benjamin Moser
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1976-09-14 （Houston, Texas, U.S.）
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English, Portuguese, French, Dutch
- Residence History
- Houston, Texas → New York City → Netherlands (Utrecht etc.) → France
Career
- Occupations
- Writer, Translator, Journalist
- Active Years
- 2003-2024
- Affiliations
- New Directions Publishing, Brazilian Academy of Letters
- Memberships
- Brazilian Academy of Letters (Sócio Correspondente)
- Nominations
- National Book Critics Circle Award (Biography) finalist 2009, Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing finalist 2014
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown University | — | History Department | Bachelor of Arts (BA) | — | United States |
| Utrecht University | — | Literature | Master of Arts (MA), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) | — | Netherlands |
Brown University
History Department
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Year of Graduation:
1998
Country:
United States
Intended to study Chinese but switched to Portuguese
Utrecht University
Literature
Degree:
Master of Arts (MA), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Country:
Netherlands
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography | Sontag: Her Life and Work | Biography or Autobiography | Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism | Winner |
| 2017 | Guggenheim Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | Recipient |
| 2016 | Prêmio Itamaraty de Diplomacia Cultural | — | — | Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs | Recipient |
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography
2020
Work:
Sontag: Her Life and Work
Category:
Biography or Autobiography
Organization:
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Result:
Winner
Guggenheim Fellowship
2017
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
Recipient
Prêmio Itamaraty de Diplomacia Cultural
2016
Organization:
Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Result:
Recipient
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Why This World: A Biography of Clarice Lispector
2009 BiographyBiography of Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector that introduced her to international audiences, particularly in the US.
Brazilian literatureWomen writersMysticism
Sontag: Her Life and Work
2019 BiographyDetailed biography of American critic and writer Susan Sontag. Pulitzer Prize winner.
American literatureCriticismFeminism
Adaptations
- [Film] Untitled Susan Sontag Biopic / Kirsten Johnson
Autoimperialismo: Three Essays on Brazil
2016 EssaysEssays on Brazil's 'autoimperialism'.
Brazilian societyUrbanizationPolitics
The Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Dutch Masters
2022 Art criticism/MemoirPersonal account of encounters with Dutch Golden Age painters like Rembrandt and Vermeer.
Dutch artImmigrationArt history
Bibliography
- Why This World: A Biography of Clarice Lispector
- Autoimperialismo: Three Essays on Brazil
- Sontag: Her Life and Work
- Frans Hals op de tweesprong
- The Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Dutch Masters
Translations by Author
- Clarice Lispector works (e.g., The Hour of the Star)
- Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza works
- Bernard-Henri Lévy, Left in Dark Times
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Intellectually rigorousSympathetic biographical styleJournalistic
- Recurring Motifs
- Cultural identityLiterary rehabilitationPolitical critique
Legacy
Internationally acclaimed for biographies of Clarice Lispector and Susan Sontag, winning the Pulitzer Prize. Also editor and translator of Lispector's complete works.
In Popular Culture
- Sontag biography to be adapted into film starring Kristen Stewart
Trivia
- Sister is writer and activist Laura Moser
- Partner is Dutch novelist Arthur Japin
- Switched majors at Brown from Chinese to Portuguese