Home 5 News 5 French novelist David Diop wins International Booker Prize

French novelist David Diop wins International Booker Prize

by | Jun 6, 2021 | News

French novelist David Diop won the prestigious International Booker Prize for books translated into English with his World War I-set novel, “At Night All Blood is Black”.

The Paris-born writer became the first French winner of the prize, awarded for a book translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland, in a ceremony broadcast online from Coventry Cathedral in central England.

Lucy Hughes-Hallett, chair of the judges, said “this story of warfare and love and madness has a terrifying power”. “We judges agreed that its incantatory prose and dark, brilliant vision had jangled our emotions and blown our minds,” she said, adding “it had cast a spell on us” She add.

“I’m extremely happy to have won this prize,” Diop said. “It’s very interesting and gratifying for me. This really shows that literature has no borders” He add.

The book’s translator Anna Moschovakis won half the £50,000 ($70,850) prize, which recognises the major role of translators.

“It’s taken me by surprise,” she sid. “I’m so thrilled about how this will even further increase the number of people who encounter this book, which I feel so fortunate to have been able to translate”.

“A translation is neither one nor two people’s work, but sort of a collaboration between an author, a translator and the book, which I think is always very exciting,” she said.

Diop’s novel tells the story of two Senegalese soldiers fighting for France in the trenches of World War I. When one, Mademba, is killed, the other, Alfa, descends into ever greater violence and madness.

Diop, who was brought up in Senegal, was inspired by the fact that his Senegalese great-grandfather fought in the war but never spoke about his experiences.

The book’s London-based publisher Pushkin Press tweeted: “Impossibly proud of David Diop and his translator Anna Moschovakis”.

Source: AFP

Recent News

01Jun
“Bad Words” Sparks 10-Way Auction

“Bad Words” Sparks 10-Way Auction

HarperFiction UK and St Martin’s Press in the US have acquired the perfect debut for anyone who works in the publishing industry.  Entitled Bad Words it is set in the world of publishing and follows the fall-out from a poisonous review.   The synopsis says: “Parker Navarro’s debut was snapped up in a million-dollar deal […]

01Jun
Uncovering a forgotten tale of heroism from the heart of Amsterdam

Uncovering a forgotten tale of heroism from the heart of Amsterdam

The story of the Dutch nursery workers who saved 600 Jewish children from the Nazis is little known outside the Netherlands.  Now the UK’s Virago is hoping to bring it to a wider audience with Susan B Katz and Esther Shaya’s Angels of Amsterdam which Sarah Savitt, Virago publisher, acquired from Laura Mamelok, subsidary rights […]

29May
Agatha Christie “teaches” again through AI

Agatha Christie “teaches” again through AI

There has been a mixed reaction to BBC Maestro’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Agatha Christie which sees the world’s most famous crime novelist ‘teaching’ the tricks of her trade to would-be crime writers.  Some have hailed it as wonderfully creative, others as “a bit Frankenstein”. According to the Bookseller, an actor, whose face and voice have […]

Related Posts

Uncovering a forgotten tale of heroism from the heart of Amsterdam

Uncovering a forgotten tale of heroism from the heart of Amsterdam

The story of the Dutch nursery workers who saved 600 Jewish children from the Nazis is little known outside the Netherlands.  Now the UK’s Virago is hoping to bring it to a wider audience with Susan B Katz and Esther Shaya’s Angels of Amsterdam which Sarah Savitt,...

Agatha Christie “teaches” again through AI

Agatha Christie “teaches” again through AI

There has been a mixed reaction to BBC Maestro’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Agatha Christie which sees the world’s most famous crime novelist ‘teaching’ the tricks of her trade to would-be crime writers.  Some have hailed it as wonderfully creative, others as “a bit...

Al-Sayyab’s House to Become Literary Museum

Al-Sayyab’s House to Become Literary Museum

A significant project to rehabilitate the historic house of iconic Iraqi poet Badr Shakir Al-Sayyab in Basra was launched this month. The initiative aims to transform the residence in Jaykur, Abu Al-Khaseeb, into a literary museum dedicated to the pioneer of poetic...

Previous Next
Close
Test Caption
Test Description goes like this