AWARDS

AWARDS

Lincoln Prize

NEW YORK — Two authors of books on Abraham Lincoln’s military leadership have been named winners of the Lincoln Prize and will share the $50,000 cash award, organizers announced Feb. 11, the 200th anniversary of the president’s birth.

James McPherson, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning Civil War history, “The Battle Cry of Freedom,” was cited for “Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief.” The other winner was Craig L. Symonds for “Lincoln and His Admirals: Abraham Lincoln, the U.S. Navy, and the Civil War.”

The award, given for outstanding Civil War scholarship, was founded in 1990 by businessmen-philanthropists Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman.

Best Translated Book

NEW YORK — A Hungarian novel about a writer who lives with his mother and an eclectic, experimental collection of Japanese verse have been named winners of the Best Translated Book Awards for fiction and poetry.

The winners, Attila Bartis’ “Tranquility” and Takashi Hiraide’s “For the Fighting Spirit of the Walnut,” were announced Feb. 19 by the Three Percent press at the University of Rochester. The press bases its name on reports that only 3 percent of books published in the United States are works in translation.

Translators for the winning books were Imre Goldstein for “Tranquility” and Sawako Nakayasu for “Fighting Spirit.” The award carries no cash prize.

E-books

Danielle Steel going digital

NEW YORK — Another brand-name writer has joined the e-book party: Danielle Steel.

The prolific, best-selling novelist said Thursday that 71 of her books — and that’s not even all of them — will be made available digitally Tuesday, including her latest, “One Day at a Time.” Other works include “Sunset in St. Tropez,” “The Promise” and “Leap of Faith.”

In recent weeks, John Grisham and Tom Clancy also have agreed to allow their novels to come out as e-books, a tiny, but quickly growing market.

COMING TO BOOKSHELVES

Speed it up! A-Rod book out sooner than planned

NEW YORK — An unauthorized and highly anticipated book about Alex Rodriguez is coming out a month sooner than planned.

Publication of Selena Roberts’ “A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez” has been moved up from May 19 to April 14 as scrutiny builds on the New York Yankees slugger after he acknowledged using banned substances from 2001-03 while playing for the Texas Rangers.

“A-Rod,” which reportedly includes salacious details about Rodriquez’s private life, was originally titled “Hit and Run: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez.” Publisher HarperCollins, which recently listed the new release date on its Web site, has announced a first printing of 150,000 copies.

Combined dispatches