(New York, NY)—Toni Morrison, a friend and colleague of the literary organization PEN America, has died today at the age of 88. PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel issued the following statement:
“PEN America mourns long-time member Toni Morrison, 1993 Nobel Prize winner, 2008 PEN Literary Service Award winner, and 2016 PEN/Saul Bellow Award winner. Her unmatched ability to use story to kindle empathy and rouse the imaginations of millions to contemplate lived experiences other than their own has transformed our culture. Her faithfulness to fellow writers and the cause of literature was unparalleled. To have her voice silenced at this moment is an almost unbearable loss. Our society would do well to recall her maxim just now, ‘If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it.’”
Click here to watch PEN America’s 2016 tribute to Morrison.
CONTACT: Stephen Fee, Director of Communications, [email protected], +1 202 309 8892