Maine author Morgan Talty's novel, "Night of the Living Rez," has been named the best debut book in any genre by the National Book Critics Circle.
Talty, a citizen of the Penobscot Indian Nation and an assistant professor at the University of Maine, said he was surprised to hear the news, announced last Thursday night in New York.
"My publicist was there and she texted me that I won, and it was crazy, it was wonderful," Talty said. "My wife and I just had a baby, and he was sleeping in my arms when I got the news, and he was sleeping in my arms when I said thank you into the mic through the phone. It was very sweet. It was a great award to win."
"Night of the Living Rez" is structured as 12 interlinked stories about life on the Penobscot reservation at Indian Island.
