Authors Focus on Washington’s Military Career, Franklin’s Diplomacy, and Britain’s Stakes

Out of a field of nearly 50 books on America’s founding era published during 2005, three finalists have been named today for the 2006 George Washington Book Prize. At $50,000, it is the nation’s largest book prize for early American history. Presented by Washington College, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, and George Washington’s Mount Vernon, the prize was launched in 2005 to recognize published works contributing to a greater understanding of the life and career of George Washington and/or the founding era.

This year’s finalists are General George Washington: A Military Life by Edward Lengel (Random House), A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France and the Birth of America by Stacy Schiff (Henry Holt), and Iron Tears: America’s Battle for Freedom, Britain’s Quagmire: 1775-1783 by Stanley Weintraub (Free Press). The winner of last year’s prize—the inaugural award—was Ron Chernow for Alexander Hamilton.

Finalists were selected by a jury of distinguished scholars of early American history, including Carol Berkin of Baruch College, Walter Isaacson of the Aspen Institute, and Gordon Wood of Brown University. “In each work selected, the jury saw refreshing perspectives on our nation’s founding era,” said historian Ted Widmer, director of Washington College’s C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, which administers the prize. “Although only one book will be selected for the award, all are worthy of special attention.”

At $50,000, the George Washington Book Prize is one of the largest non-fiction prizes in the United States. The winner will be announced during ceremonies on Tuesday, May 23, 2006, at George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens in Virginia.

For more information on the George Washington Book Prize, visit:
http://gwprize.washcoll.edu/