Looks like it's Jim Shepard. AP reports that he won the Story Prize (for short fiction) this year.
Shepard won for his collection Like You'd Understand, Anyway. Jim is presumably happy that he won the award, but it sure doesn't pay like the Alfaguara prize, which comes with a payday of $175,000. This one pays a measly $20,000. Of course, he would have had to write Like You'd Understand, Anyway, in Spanish, so that might've been a problem.
I read half this blog before I realized you weren't talking about Jean Shepherd. I thought maybe I'd misread his obit about a decade ago.
Posted by: Brett Bayne | February 28, 2008 at 12:13 PM
And Jean Shepherd is...??? Yes, I could Google him, but I'm too lazy.
Posted by: Connie | February 28, 2008 at 12:19 PM
I can't believe there's a book editor alive who doesn't know who Jean Shepherd is (and he lived in Florda, too!). He's the wildly popular humor writer associated with that "Christmas Story" movie; his books included "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash." He's more Fannie Flagg than Mark Twain; I was never a fan, really, but it was hard to escape his work.
Posted by: Brett Bayne | February 28, 2008 at 12:37 PM
Apparently it wasn't that hard.
I must have heard of him, though. Otherwise why would I think Jean was a man? I mean, that name doesn't sound French.
And I really like Fannie Flagg!
Posted by: Connie | February 28, 2008 at 12:45 PM
I'd be curious to know which of your other blog fans have heard of Shepherd.
Posted by: Brett Bayne | February 28, 2008 at 01:14 PM