2009 pulitzer for fiction: olive kitteridge

Loved this book. Was the first book I finished in 2009, and I reviewed it here in January. And am happy to see it won the Pulitzer for fiction this afternoon.

"For distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000). Awarded to “Olive Kitteridge,” by Elizabeth Strout (Random House), a collection of 13 short stories set in small-town Maine that packs a cumulative emotional wallop, bound together by polished prose and by Olive, the title character, blunt, flawed and fascinating."  

And the finalists: 

"Also nominated as finalists in this category were: "The Plague of Doves" by Louise Erdrich (HarperCollins), a haunting novel that explores racial discord, loss of land and changing fortunes in a corner of North Dakota where Native Americans and whites share a tangled history; and "All Souls" by Christine Schutt (Harcourt), a memorable novel that focuses on the senior class at an exclusive all-girl Manhattan prep school where a beloved student battles a rare cancer, fiercely honest, carefully observed and subtly rendered."

Prizes can be over-rated but if it turns people's attention to a book over some other entertainment then more power to all those accolades in the literary world. I have read neither of the finalists but will do so now. The anxiety of influence or the quest for the next great read?

What book did you think or hoped would wind up with today's fiction prize?