Title suggestion: Naming Candidate - Six Novels Make the Cut for International Literature Award
For the €35,000-sponsored International Literature Prize from the House of World Cultures (HKW) and The Elementary Particle Foundation, there are six nominations. 132 German translations of works from 29 different languages were presented to them by publishers just the other day, as per HKW. The awarding of the contemporary translated literature prize will take place on July 5. The prize includes €20,000 for the author and €15,000 for the translator.
These are the nominated novels: "James" by Percival Everett, translated from English by Nikolaus Stingl; "My Men" by Victoria Kielland, from Norwegian by Elke Ranzinger; "Kibogo's Ascension" by Scholastique Mukasonga, from French by Jan Schönherr; "Quallen haben keine Ohren" by Adèle Rosenfeld, from French by Nicola Denis; "My Cat Yugoslavia" by Pajtim Statovci, from Finnish by Stefan Moster; and "When There is No Light" by Juan Gabriel Vásquez, translated from Spanish by Susanne Lange.
Allegations from two former jury members last year stirred controversy. They accused the jury in the newspaper "Die Zeit" of not granting the 2023 prize based on literary merit, but on political grounds instead. HKW denied these claims. The criteria for considering these titles was their excellent literary quality.
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The shortlist for the International Literature Prize includes six novels from various languages, with "James" by Percival Everett being one of them, translated from English by Nikolaus Stingl. Despite the controversy from last year's jury, the nominated novels this year are selected based on their exceptional literary quality, like "My Cat Yugoslavia" by Pajtim Statovci, translated from Finnish by Stefan Moster. This year's prize ceremony will take place in Berlin, highlighting Germany's significant role in the world of literature.
