James Patterson to receive honorary National Book Award

NEW YORK (AP) — James Patterson, the best-selling author and tireless advocate for books and literacy, is receiving an honorary National Book Award.

Patterson has won the Literarian Award for "outstanding service to the American literary community," the National Book Foundation announced Wednesday. Patterson has donated millions of dollars to bookstores and libraries and hundreds of thousands of books to children and members of the military. He has also started his own publishing imprint at Little, Brown and Co.

Previous recipients of the Literarian prize include Maya Angelou and Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

Patterson, 68, will be honored Nov. 18 at the annual National Book Awards ceremony dinner in Manhattan. The awards are presented by the nonprofit book foundation.