You are cordially invited to attend the 2010 Arab American Book Award Ceremony, presented by the Arab American National Museum, at 8 p.m. on Monday, October 4, 2010. The event will take place at the Carnegie Institution for Science, 1530 P Street NW 
 in Washington, D.C. 20005.

For more info, click here.

The Arab American Book Award program encourages the publication and excellence of books that preserve and advance the understanding, knowledge and resources of the Arab American community by celebrating the thoughts and lives of Arab Americans. The purpose of the Award is to inspire authors, educate readers and foster a respect and understanding of Arab American culture.

In addition to the winners below, legendary Arab American and recently retired White House journalist Helen Thomas will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

A book signing will follow the ceremony; books will be available for purchase at the event.

2010 Arab American Book Award Winners

Fiction
Master of the Eclipse
by Etel Adnan

Non-Fiction
Angeleno Days: An Arab American Writer on Family, Place, and Politics
by Gregory Orfalea

Poetry
Diary of a Wave Outside the Sea: Poetry and Stories from Iraq
by Dunya Mikhail
2010 Honorable Mentions

Non-Fiction
A Country Called Amreeka: Arab Roots, American Stories
by Alia Malek

and

Homeland Insecurity: The Arab American and Muslim American Experience After 9/11
by Louise A. Cainkar

Thanks to all for making this a successful campaign! We met our goal one week early. The campaign will remain "live" through Friday, September 10. You will receive additional details soon regarding your pledge.

Thanks again for your support with this project!

Remember life before laptops, netbooks and smartphones? We do! One reminder is this portable typewriter carried by Helen Thomas early in her career. Helen generously donated this to the Museum's collection a few years back and it is on display with other artifacts in the Museum's Making An Impact gallery. Imagine lugging this around to press events!

Well, there are only 18 days left in our campaign. Thanks to you we've raised over 53% of the required funds. However, we need your help to successfully complete the project. Please help spread word of this fundraiser among your family and friends. Thanks for your continued support!

We're please to introduce you to Susan McElhinney. This is a recent photo of her posing with the sculpture. I asked her to share a few thoughts on Helen and here's what she had to say:

Helen is an icon and has been for generations. As a young photographer covering the White House for Newsweek, I looked to Helen— her tenacity, her independent thinking, her grace all coming together in a package of excellence— there was never a compromise to go along and get along. I had models of women photographers— Margaret Bourke-White and Dorothea Lange, but here was a giant— here in the present—who supported and nurtured with utmost generosity the young women around her. She is an icon— not just for journalism— but for women.

This project is certainly drawing a lot of attention from the media. Today, the Los Angeles Times' Culture Monster - an art blog - featured a short article called, Journalist Helen Thomas still making waves.

Helen Thomas may have retired from her role as journalist, but the former queen of the White House press corps is still managing to cause trouble.

In recent weeks, a planned sculpture of Thomas -- to be created by artist Susan Tinsley McElhinney -- has provoked grumblings from various political groups around the country. The debate centers on whether Thomas, 90, deserves to be honored after she made inflammatory comments concerning Jews and Israel that precipitated her hasty resignation in June. (Click here to read the full article.)

Have a nice weekend and thanks for your continued support!

P.S. Please continue to spread the word about the project!

It's Helen's birthday and today she turns 90! You may recall that Helen and President Obama share a birthday. Last year there was a small celebration at the White House, complete with cupcakes. Here's a photo from the celebration by Pete Souza.

We wish you the best, Helen, and here's to many more years of good health!

Here's an interesting short article from Saudi Aramco World that takes a look at Arab Americans in journalism. The article was published in March/April 2006 and was titled, Calling Helen Thomas.

How many Arab–American journalists are there in the United States? The National Arab American Journalists Association reached almost 150 members in its first three years, according to its founder, nationally syndicated columnist Ray Hanania. About half of them work in mainstream, non-Arab–American media. In comparison, the national Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) has some 9000 members.

If pressed to name a single Arab–American journalist, most people could probably only reply, “Helen Thomas.” Now a senior columnist, Thomas has been a White House reporter since President John F. Kennedy’s day. She was the first woman officer of the National Press Club, first woman president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, first woman member of the Gridiron Club and, for decades, entitled to ask the first or second question during presidential press conferences. In 2000, the SPJ created an annual Lifetime Achievement Award—and named it after Thomas.

For Arab–American journalists, she set the bar high. The trouble is, how many Helen Thomases can there be in the future? Where is the next Helen Thomas coming from?

http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200602/calling.helen.thomas.htm

Good morning!

Through your generous support we've managed to raise over $1800 in just two days! Way to go.

We were talking about this project in a department meeting yesterday and one of the AANM curators mentioned that we had some of Helen's recipes in the collection. Recipes?!

In 1962, the Women's National Press Club published a spiral bound cookbook titled, "Second Helping." Helen served as president of the Women's National Press Club from 1959–60 before going on to serve as the first woman officer of the National Press Club after it opened its doors to women members. Inside this cookbook are two recipes from Helen. We're sharing the recipes below. Be sure to let us know if you use one of the recipes!

Accession No.: 2010.43.01

This morning, The Detroit News spotlighted the project in an article titled, "Arab-American museum raising funds for bust of Helen Thomas."

The Arab American National Museum kicked off a fundraising effort Wednesday for a bronze bust of Helen Thomas, but officials acknowledge the journalist's controversial remarks about Israel could hamper efforts.

Follow the link to read the article: http://bit.ly/a8gnMO

Thanks to all for getting this project off to a great start on day one! It's amazing how quickly information spreads these days. We haven't yet sent out a formal press release, but local media has already learned of this initiative.

Here's a link to a short article published earlier today on mlive.com, a Michigan-based news source: http://bit.ly/cSbVc8

Thanks for your support!
The AANM