Dylan nominated for literary prize

Bob Dylan, the unofficial poet laureate of the rock ’n’ roll generation, has now been officially placed alongside such literary greats as Philip Roth and Adrienne Rich, not to mention biographies of Shakespeare and Willem de Kooning. All were among nominees announced yesterday for the National Book Critics Circle prizes.

Dylan, whose memoir Chronicles, Vol 1 was a favourite with both reviewers and readers, is among the finalists for biography/autobiography, his competition including two acclaimed best sellers: Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton and Stephen Greenblatt’s biography of Shakespeare.