Photo: Greg Lotus
As of November, 2008 was already an undeniably good year for writer Alex Ross (pictured above left). He picked up a National Book Critics Circle Award for his history of 20th century music, The Rest Is Noise, continued writing his blog of the same name along with music criticism for The New Yorker, won a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant," and -- we like to think most impressively of all -- was chosen as a 2008 Out 100 honoree.
Now word comes that The Rest Is Noise has won the 40-year-old Harvard grad the Guardian first book award. The chair of the judging panel, Guardian literary editor Claire Armitstead, told the newspaper: "In some quarters this book has been seen as not having a popular appeal. Our prize -- which, uniquely, relies on readers' groups in the early stages of judging -- proves that, on the contrary, there is a huge appetite among readers for clear, serious but accessible books." One of the members of the Waterstone's reading groups, who helped in the judging process, added, "Every time I felt overwhelmed by the technicalities [in the book], along came a sublime metaphor or simile that would light up the prose."
Though we're suckers for gland-tinglingly-cloying pop songs (lately we can't seem to get -- and really don't want -- our iPods to play anything but Ms. Spears' "Amnesia" 24/7) we're always up for an intelligent discussion of the ways music has impacted history -- and vice versa. Congrats, Alex.
For more on Alex Ross and all the other 2008 Out 100 honorees, including behind-the-scenes video footage of the Golden Age of Hollywood-themed photo shoot, head over to Out.com.
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