opinionated commentary on literary matters - from the complete review

The Literary Saloon Archive

21 - 30 November 2024

21 November: (American) National Book Awards | Writers' Trust of Canada Awards | Prix du Meilleur livre étranger | Cold Enough For Snow review
22 November: Murakami Haruki profile | Warwick Prize | JCB Prize sponsorship protest | HWA Crown Awards
23 November: Boualem Sansal detained in Algeria
24 November: JCB Prize | Japanese fiction in ... the UK | Murakami Haruki Q & A | Naples 1925 review
25 November: Breyten Breytenbach (1939-2024) | FT Business Book Award Q & A | Reading in ... Spain
26 November: Urs Allemann (1948-2024) | Sapir Prize longlist | The Rest is Silence review
27 November: NYTBR 100 Notable Books of 2024 | Orhan Pamuk Q & A | John Dos Passos Prize shortlist
28 November: Jan Michalski Prize | Irish Book Awards
29 November: Scotland's National Book Awards | John Calder Translation Prize | Prix Mare Nostrum
30 November: de Boon longlist | Publishing sales

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       de Boon longlist

       They've announced the longlists for the 2025 de Boon, the leading Flemish book prize, with two categories -- children's/YA literature, and general (both fiction and non lumped together), written in Dutch -- paying out €50,000 in each.
       The fifteen titles on the general longlist include works by Arnon Grunberg and Niña Weijers
       Admirably, they reveal all the books that were considered for the prize (as every literary prize should ...) -- 539 titles for the general prize.
       The shortlists will be announced 10 January, and the winners on 25 March.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Publishing sales

       'Tis the season for sales from (especially: independent and university) publishers when you buy directly from their sites -- coming in all shapes and sizes, especially this 'Black Friday'-weekend but in many cases extending to Christmas or even the end of the year; check out you favorite university press and independent publisher sites.

       So also, in case you haven't gotten your copy yet, my Salome in Graz is 30% off at Lulu.com with the promo code HOLIDAY30 at checkout through 2 December.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Scotland's National Book Awards

       The Saltire Society has announced the winners of this year's Scotland's National Book Awards; see, for example, John Hislop's report in The Edinburgh Reporter.
       Thunderclap by Laura Cumming won both Non-Fiction Book of the Year as well as overall Book of the Year, while John Burnside's Ruin, Blossom took the Poetry award, posthumously.
       Ajay Close's What Doesn't Kill Us won the Fiction category.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       John Calder Translation Prize

       The Society of Authors has announced the launch of the John Calder Translation Prize, named in honor of publisher John Calder (who had an excellent list).
       It is open to works of fiction, non, and poetry, as long as they are full-length -- but is limited to translations: "from any European language into English". (The Oxford-Weidenfeld Prize is similarly limited to translations: "from any living European language" -- a shame the Calder doesn't expand on that.)

       (Updated - 6 December): The Society of Authors seems to have gotten quite a lot of ... feedback regarding the language limitation and has now admirably opened the prize to translations: "from any language into English". Good for them, good for the prize.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Prix Mare Nostrum

       The French are big on regional literary prizes -- witness also their 'Grand prix de littérature américaine' ... -- and the latest prize to announce its winners is one focused on the Mediterranean, as they've now announced the winners of the Prix Mare Nostrum in its four categories, two of which are fiction (general and first); the others are 'history and geopolitics' and 'philosophy and spirituality'.
       The novel prize went to La danse des flamants roses by Yara El-Ghadban; see also the Mémoire d'Encrier publicity page.
       (One of this Palestinian-Canadian author's novels has been translated into English -- I am Ariel Sharon; see also the House of Anansi publicity page.)

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Jan Michalski Prize

       They've announced the winner of this year's Jan Michalski Prize for Literature -- a CHF50,000 prize for: "a work of world literature" in any language --, and it is Ducks, by Kate Beaton; see also the Drawn & Quarterly publicity page.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Irish Book Awards

       They've announced the winners of this year's An Post Irish Book Awards, with Heart, Be at Peace by Donal Ryan winning Eason Novel of the Year and the Irish-language fiction prize going to Geansaithe Móra by Gearóidín Nic Cárthaigh; see also the LeabhairCOMHAR publicity page.
       Sally Rooney didn't win any of the book prizes, but was named Library Association of Ireland Author of the Year.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       NYTBR 100 Notable Books of 2024

       The New York Times Book Review has released its list of their 100 Notable Books of 2024 (presumably paywalled).
       As best I can tell, a mere four of the books are works in translation (there were eight last year)..
       Four of the titles from the 2023 list were under review at the complete review at the time of its release; this year I managed a mere two:

• The Bright Sword, by Lev Grossman
• The Empusium, by Olga Tokarczuk

       (Two more are on my to-read pile, and I am curious about a handful of others, but don't count on reviews of too many more of these.)

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Orhan Pamuk Q & A

       At Hyperallergic 'Kaveh Akbar speaks with the Nobel Prize-winning Turkish novelist about his book of journal entries and paintings, authors who also make art, and the delight of writing fiction', in Orhan Pamuk’s Secret Paintings of Time.

       Pamuk's Illustrated Notebooks 2009-2022, Memories of Distant Mountains is now out; see also the publicity pages from Alfred A. Knopf and Faber & Faber, or get your copy at Amazon.com, Bookshop.org, or Amazon.co.uk.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       John Dos Passos Prize shortlist

       Longwood University has announced the five finalists for this year's John Dos Passos Prize -- awarded to an: "underappreciated writer whose work offers incisive, original commentary on American themes".
       The winner will be announced next month.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Urs Allemann (1948-2024)

       Swiss author Urs Allemann -- of, among other books, the notorious Babyf**ker -- has passed away; see, for example, the report in Der Bund.
       His The Old Man and the Bench has also been published in English, by Dalkey Archive Press; see also their publicity page.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Sapir Prize longlist

       They've announced the twelve-title-strong longlist for the Sapir Prize, a leading Hebrew-language fiction prize; see, for example, this report.
       The winner will be announced in January.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       The Rest is Silence review

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Augusto Monterroso's only novel, The Rest is Silence, finally available in English, from New York Review Books.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Breyten Breytenbach (1939-2024)

       South African author Breyten Breytenbach has passed away; see, for example, Danai Nesta Kupemba's report at the BBC.

       I have read several of his books, but only one of his works is under review at the complete review, Voice Over.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       FT Business Book Award Q & A

       At the LSE blog Martin C.W. Walker has a Q & A with Andrew Hill, senior business writer at the Financial Times, about the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year Award -- the: "purpose of the prize, its history and what makes a good business book" --, in Business books for busy people.
       Among his observations:

There seem to be more women writing business books today compared to the early days of the prize, though it is still the case that only 25 per cent of the books entered are by women. The topics seem to change over time to reflect public interest. Recently there have been, perhaps surprisingly, fewer good books about China or globalisation and, of course, more focused on technology. Celebrity CEO books still feature among the entries, though few get through.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Reading in ... Spain

       At El País they have the results of a large-scale survey of reading in Spain in the twenty-first century, La gran encuesta al lector español del siglo XXI.
       The most 'relevant' Spanish author, according to respondents ? Arturo Perez-Reverte -- by a wide margin.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       JCB Prize

       They've announced the winner of this year's JCB Prize for Literature, a leading Indian fiction prize, and it is Lorenzo Searches for the Meaning of Life, by Upamanyu Chatterjee; see also, for example, the Scroll.in report and the Speaking Tiger publicity page.
       Chatterjee's English, August has been published in the US/UK, but his more recent books haven't -- maybe this prize-win will see more become available outside India.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Japanese fiction in ... the UK

       At The Guardian John Self considers Surrealism, cafes and lots (and lots) of cats: why Japanese fiction is booming -- as:

In 2022, figures from Nielsen BookScan showed that Japanese fiction represented 25% of all translated fiction sales in the UK. The dominance is even more striking this year: figures obtained by the Guardian show that, of the top 40 translated fiction titles for 2024 so far, 43% are Japanese

       (I'm not quite sure what that second statistic means -- 43 per cent of 40 titles is ... 17.2 titles; presumably (?) they mean 43 per cent of the sales of the top 40 titles.)
       Apparently, also -- so Alison Fincher --: "The role of Convenience Store Woman in the Japanese literature boom really can't be overstated", with Murata's books having: "now sold more than half a million copies".
       However:

The fact remains, however, that the genres of Japanese fiction that are popular in the UK – crime, young women’s literary fiction, comfort books – are “heavily curated”, as Fincher puts it, to the detriment of other genres that are popular in Japan.

       See also the Japanese fiction under review at the complete review.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Murakami Haruki Q & A

       At The Guardian John Self has a Q & A with the The City and Its Uncertain Walls-author, Haruki Murakami: ‘My books have been criticised so much over the years, I don’t pay much attention’

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Naples 1925 review

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Martin Mittelmeier on Adorno, Benjamin, and the Summer That Made Critical Theory, in Naples 1925.

       This is based on Mittelmeier's Adorno in Neapel, which came out in German in 2013; the English translation has just come out, in Yale University Press' Margellos World Republic of Letters.
       I hold both the press (and imprint) and translator Shelley Frisch in high regard, but this English version is a reduced and revised version of the German original and, it seems (I haven't seen the original), not for the better ......
       I can (sort of ...) understand re-shaping a book for a foreign audience in translation, especially a decade on, when the author might want to add or change things, but what was done here does not seem to have served the book well .....

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Boualem Sansal detained in Algeria

       French-Algerian author Boualem Sansal (2084, etc.) traveled to Algeria last week and has not been heard from since; apparently he was detained by the authorities.
       France 24 reports on Concern in France over fate of prize-winning French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, while at the BBC Hugh Schofield reports that France alarmed by disappearance of writer in Algeria.
       See also the 'Communiqué des Éditions Gallimard', Pour la libération de Boualem Sansal, and, sigh, the Algérie Presse Service report, Sansal, le pantin du révisionnisme anti-algérien.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       Murakami Haruki profile

       At Esquire Jonathan Russell Clark writes about The Cult of Haruki Murakami, as Murakami's The City and its Uncertain Walls is just out in English.
       Clark finds:

Murakami’s global appeal, then, might exist in the heightened contrast between the unruly, traumatizing, consciousness-splitting, ghost-filled world beyond and the comforting, drama-less certitude of the conventional life.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Warwick Prize

       They've announced the winner of this year's Warwick Prize for Women in Translation, and it is Andrew Shanks' translation of Nelly Sachs' Revelation Freshly Erupting; see also the Carcanet publicity page, or get your copy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       JCB Prize sponsorship protest

       The JCB Prize for Literature, a leading Indian fiction prize, is the latest prize to find itself facing complaints about tainted sponsorship money, as an open letter signed by more than 120 authors, translators, and publishers calls the prize out, writing:

to expose the deep-rooted hypocrisy of the JCB Prize for Literature, on account of the company’s major role in the horrifying destruction of homes and livelihoods across India, Kashmir and Palestine.

       See also, for example, the Scroll.in report, Over 120 writers accuse JCB Literature Prize of hypocrisy over links to ‘bulldozer justice’.
       The winner of the JCB Prize for Literature is to be announced tomorrow, 23 November.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       HWA Crown Awards

       The Historical Writers Association has announced the winners of this year's HWA Crown Awards.
       The HWA Gold Crown Award went to Disobedient by Elizabeth Fremantle.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

       (American) National Book Awards

       The National Book Foundation has announced the winners of this year's National Book Awards.
       The National Book Award for Translated Literature went to Lin King's translation of Yáng Shuang-zi's Taiwan Travelogue; see also the Graywolf publicity page.
       The Fiction prize went to James, by Percival Everett.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Writers' Trust of Canada Awards

       They've announced the winners of this year's seven Writers' Trust of Canada Awards. Unfortunately, you have to click through each of the prizes to see who won at the official site -- single-page press release, folks, please ! -- so see, for example, the easier-to-peruse report at CBC.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Prix du Meilleur livre étranger

       They announced the winners of this year's prix du Meilleur livre étranger, a leading French prize for works in translation; see, for example, the Livres Hebdo report.
       Both prizes went to translations from the English: the fiction prize went to Hisham Matar's My Friends, and the non-fiction prize went to Anna Funder's Wifedom.

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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       Cold Enough For Snow review

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Jessica Au's Cold Enough For Snow.

       This won the inaugural, 2020 (but announced in 2021 ...) The Novel Prize, a prize co-sponsored by (American) New Directions, (British) Fitzcarraldo Editions, and (Australian) Giramondo who then published it -- quite the publisher line-up, and it is indeed a worthy winner. (The prize, however, could do with updating the would-be official site.)

(Posted by: M.A.Orthofer)    - permanent link -

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