Turkish author Orhan Pamuk was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature on Oct 12. The Swedish Academy said that the 54-year-old Istanbul-born Pamuk "in the quest for the melancholic soul of his native city has discovered new symbols for the clash and interlacing of cultures." He is most recently the author of Istanbul, a memoir of his life in the city, and is best known for such novels as My Name Is Red, The White Castle and Snow.

Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights by Kenji Yoshino has won a 2006 Critics' Choice Award, given by the American Educational Studies Association. This book will be on display at the annual AESA conference, to be held November 1-5 in Spokane, WA.

John Hope Franklin, author of From Slavery to Freedom, has been awarded the John W. Kluge Prize for the Study of Humanity. He will share this award with historian Yu Ying-shih. The Kluge Prize rewards lifetime achievement in the study of humanity with focus on disciplines not recognized by Nobel prizes. Such disciplines include history, philosophy, politics, anthropology, sociology, religion, criticism in the arts and humanities, and linguistics.

Charles Mann's 1491 has won the 2006 Communication Award for Best Book from the National Academies in Washington, DC. The award will be presented at a ceremony in November in Irvine, California. Mann is the fourth recipient of the award.