Angie Cruz has won the John Dos Passos Prize for Literature, given annually by Longwood University to “a talented American writer who experiments with form, explores a range of voices and merits further recognition.”
Cruz, a New York native, made her literary debut in 2001 with the novel Soledad and followed that up in 2005 with Let It Rain Coffee. She had a breakout hit in 2019 with Dominicana, which was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and was named a finalist for the Aspen Words Literary Prize for her 2022 novel, How Not To Drown in a Glass of Water.
Her most recent work, the children’s picture book Angélica and la Güira, illustrated by Luz Batista, was published last year.
Longwood professor David Magill, chair of the award jury, said in a statement, “Angie Cruz’s fiction offers compelling depictions of the lives of working-class immigrant people in the United States, challenging the stereotypes that circulate in our culture through her inventive narratives. She combines keen attention to language with storytelling that is at times playful, at times passionate, but always evocative and detailed.”
The Dos Passos Prize, named after the novelist known for his U.S.A. trilogy, was established in 1980. Past winners include John Edgar Wideman, Annie Proulx, Maxine Hong Kingston, Colson Whitehead, and Patricia Engel.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
