Autumn Hill Books of Iowa City received a 2008 Book of the Year Award for its 2007 title Anima Mundi. The novel, by Susanna Tamaro, was translated from the Italian by University of Iowa Professors Cinzia Sartini Blum (Dept. of French and Italian) and Russell Scott Valentino (Dept. of Cinema and Comparative Literature). The book’s Italian edition, which was originally published in 1997, has thus far been translated into 28 languages. An author tour is being planned in conjunction with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for late fall 2008.

The Book of the Year Awards are sponsored by Foreword Magazine and presented at Book Expo America every spring. Anima Mundi was awarded a silver medal in the fiction translations category.