NEW YORK — The Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction was awarded Monday to Lawrence Wright for his book, "The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11," a penetrating analysis of how Islamic fundamentalism has reshaped the modern world.

Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff won the Pulitzer Prize for history for "The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation." The book traces how the civil rights struggle was covered by the press, breaking down prejudices within journalism and as well as in American society.

Cormac McCarthy won for fiction for "The Road."

Debby Applegate won for biography for "The Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher."

David Lindsay-Abaire won the drama prize for "Rabbit Hole."

Jazz artist Ornette Coleman won for music for "Sound Grammar."

Natasha Trethewey won for poetry for "Native Guard."