Patti Smith wins National Book Award for nonfiction - National Book Awards - Salon.com: Smith became the rare rock star to win a competitive literary award (Bob Dylan has win an honorary Pulitzer) and the one-time punk rocker offered an old-fashioned tribute to books. She begged publishers not to let the printed page die in the electronic age and recalled working decades ago at a Scribner's bookstore, stacking the National Book Award winners and wondering how it would feel to win one.
"So thank you for letting me find out," said Smith, 63, who now claims an award previously given to Rachel Carson, Gore Vidal and Joan Didion.