HR1572 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1572 LRB094 22163 MST 60820 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the State of Illinois wish to congratulate Richard Powers on being awarded the National Book Award for his fiction novel "The Echo Maker"; and

WHEREAS, Winners of the National Book Award each receive a prize of $10,000; and

WHEREAS, "The Echo Maker" is a scientific tale of memory and identity set in the age of September 11th and the Iraq War; it includes passages on neurology and clinical psychology in a story about a man who loses his memory in a car crash and the sister who agonizes over his failure to recognize her; he often refers to the news of the time, setting his narrative against the shock of the terrorist attacks and the determined path to the Iraq War; and

WHEREAS, Richard Powers is a Swanlund Chair professor at the University of Illinois and has long worked in his love for science in such works as "Galatea 2.2" and "Operation Wandering Soul"; and

WHEREAS, Richard Powers is a widely respected author with a passionate readership; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Richard Powers on being awarded the National Book Award; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Richard Powers as a token of our esteem.