Which novel by Edwin O'Connor won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1962?
Answer
The Edge of Sadness
Which novel by Edwin O'Connor won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1962? The Edge of Sadness.
The Edge of Sadness is a 1961 novel set in a fictional New England community shaped by Catholic parish life, old resentments, alcoholism, and the possibility of moral renewal. Its narrator, Father Hugh Kennedy, returns to his hometown and confronts people and memories he had tried to leave behind.
O’Connor’s Pulitzer came in 1962, following the book’s publication in 1961. The novel’s emphasis on conscience, forgiveness, and damaged relationships distinguishes it from the political and historical novels listed as alternatives.
A common mix-up involves The Last Hurrah, also by O’Connor. That earlier novel was a 1956 bestseller about an aging mayor and urban politics, but it did not win the Pulitzer. Advise and Consent won in 1960, while All the King’s Men won in 1947.