First readers for Dayton Literary Peace Prize reflect on experiences

Inspired by the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords that ended the war in Bosnia, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize (www. daytonliterarypeaceprize.org) is the only international literary peace prize awarded in the United States and celebrates the power of literature to promote peace, social justice, and global understanding. This year’s winners are:

■ Fiction — “Salt Houses,” by Hala Alyan

■ Fiction runner-up — “Pachinko,” by Min Jin Lee

■ Nonfiction — “We Were Eight Years in Power,” by Ta-Nehisi Coates

■ Nonfiction runnerup — “Reading with Patrick,” by Michelle Kuo

First readers read five or six books from either the nonfiction or fiction submissions, and provide a detailed written analysis, responding to questions about the books’ merits and themes. A slate of contenders then is passed along to the finalist judges.

Each year, I like to explore with a few first readers their experiences in the process. This year, I interviewed via email the first readers whose books ultimately included the fiction and nonfiction winners and runners-up.

This week, we’ll hear from the first readers for the fiction winner and runner-up; next week, first readers for nonfiction winner and runner-up will share their thoughts.

Josh McCall — First reader, “Salt Houses,” by Hala Alyan, fiction winner

McCall is a writer, editor and freelance web designer, residing in North Kingstown, R.I. In his second year as a first reader, McCall says he was “recommended as a first reader by my friend Bob Shacochis,” who won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize for Fiction in 2014, for “The Woman Who Lost Her Soul.”

“Being a first reader hasn’t really changed my view of literature — I’ve been a fanatical reader most of my adult life — but it has reminded me how rare truly great books are,” McCall explains. As a first reader, he says, “if you’re lucky, one will knock your socks off.”

As to “Salt Houses,” McCall shared part of what he wrote about the novel to the Dayton Literary Peace Prize committee: “’Salt Houses’ is a sprawling tale of one family’s experience of the Palestinian Diaspora.

The novel stitches together five decades of conflicts but almost always the guns and the bombs are around the corner, down the road, over the horizon, and the focus is instead on the family, which eventually extends to four generations. Salt Houses deals with issues of peace and conflict in ways that are both literal and figurative. Its timeline alone covers a tremendous number of the conflicts that have plagued the Arab world (and, in a fashion, the United States) this last half-century. It is a lovely, rare book about family, war and the struggle against entropy.”

Penni Meyer — First reader, “Pachinko,” by Min Jin Lee, fiction runner-up

Meyer, of Kettering, has been a first reader for four years. She is retired from Kettering Fairmont High School after 40 years of service as an English teacher and English Department chair.

“Being a first reader was a natural fit for a retired English teacher and an admirer of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize,” says Meyer. “I’m an eclectic reader, but many of the books I’ve reviewed are not ones I would have chosen to read. I’ve been inspired by the variety of viewpoints from authors around the world and have enjoyed learning about the common bonds all humans have despite our origins, our beliefs, and our other differences.”

She described “Pachinko” as “a sweeping family saga [that] engaged me from start to finish. I didn’t realize that so many Koreans moved to Japan for a better life but met with extreme prejudice. From the taunting of children and neighbors to the laws preventing them from becoming Japanese citizens, this extended family works hard to rise above their circumstances yet cannot control the forces against them. By focusing on one family’s struggles to succeed, Min Jin Lee’s book shows the difficulties of assimilation and how strife can tear a family apart. Even though the book is long, readers will be intrigued by this family’s story.”

Upcoming Literary Events

■ Monday, Oct. 15, 6-8 p.m., Yellow Springs Community Library (415 Xenia Ave., Yellow Springs) — Lori Gravley will host “Getting Ready to Write Your Novel” for ages 16 and up to help writers prepare for November, National Novel Writing Month.

■ Tuesday, Oct. 16, 7-8:30 p.m., Wright Memorial Public Library, 1776 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood — The Wright Library Poets meet monthly to share work and hone craft; beginners welcome. For more information, contact Elizabeth Schmidt at schmidt@wrightlibrary. org or 294-7171.

■ Thursday, Oct. 18, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Oakwood Starbucks, 2424 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood — Word’s Worth Writing Center (www.wordsworthdayton.com) offers a “Writing Workout” led by Katrina Kittle. See the website to register.

■ Sunday, October 21, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Wright Memorial Public Library, 1776 Far Hills Avenue, Oakwood—Writers’ Café, a casual hang out for writers ages 18 and up and of all experience levels, meets the first Friday (7:00 p.m.) and third Sunday (at 2:30) of each month.

■ Sunday, Oct. 21, 2 p.m., Lutheran Church of Our Savior, 155 E. Thruston Blvd. — Wright Memorial Public Library’s

Far Hills Speaker Series presents Linda Carrick Thomas, author of “Polonium in the Playhouse,” a nonfiction narrative about how the Talbot Family’s “Runnymede Playhouse” in Oakwood served as a top-secret laboratory for developing the triggering mechanisms for atomic bombs in World War II.

Sharon Short writes historical mysteries under the pen name Jess Montgomery (www. jessmontgomeryauthor. com). Send her column ideas, book club news, or literary events at sharonshort1983@ gmail.com.