Dr.Siddhartha Mukherjee’s “The Emperor of All Maladies” has been awarded the Guardian First Book Award.
Siddhartha Mukherjee
The prize carries a cash award of 10,000 Pounds Sterling.
Of the five books shortlisted for the Guardian Prize, ‘The Emperor of All Maladies’ is the only one in the non-fiction category. The other four books, all in the ‘fiction’ category, are: “Pigeon English” by Stephen Kelman, “Down The Rabbit Hole” by Juan Pablo Villalobos, “The Collaborator” by Mirza Waheed, and “The Submission” by Amy Waldman.
Sarah Churchwell, author and scholar; David Nicholls, author; Antonia Fraser, author; Stuart Broom, from Waterstone’s; and Katherine Viner, Deputy Editor, Guardian, are the other judges in the panel headed by Lisa Allardice, Editor of Guardian Review.
Dr.Siddhartha Mukherjee who is Assistant professor of Medicine at Columbia University said that it was “a great and distinct honour”. He is working on his next book now.
Dr.Mukhejee said: “You never write books to win awards. They are immensely gratifying but unexpected.”
Dr.Mukherjee further said: “In recognising the ‘Emperor of All Maladies’, the judges have also rcognised the extraordinary courage and resilience of the men and women who struggle with illness, and the men and women who struggle to treat illnesses. I am delighted and honured to join a formidable list of editors and scholars – Zadie Smith, Alexandra Harris, Petina Gappah, ad Alex Ross among them.”
“The Emperor of All Maladies” recounts the history of the dreaded disease – Cancer – right from the first recorded instance of surgical intervention by way of surgical removal of a breast (Mastectomy) till the present day.
Lisa Allardice said that the book is “a remarkable and unusual achievement.”
She said: “He has managed to balance such a vast amount of information with lively narratives, combining complicated science with moving human stories. Far from being intimidating, it’s a compelling, accessible book, full of facts and anecdotes that you know you will remember and which you immediately want to pass on to someone else.”
Sarah Churchwell said that Siddhartha Mukherjee had “marshalled an immense amount of material into a readable and inspiring story.”
It is ironic that the book which found no publishers initially has become immensely successful with readers across the world and has won several notable awards including the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-fiction and, now, the Guardian Prize.
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