In her books she tells “dozens of little stories that are artfully woven into wonderful novels and draw us readers from the first sentence into a world that often seems strange, but which becomes familiar after a few pages,” said Secretary of State for Culture Andrea Mayer (Greens) at the award ceremony.
“There you live together with the characters in the novels, who seem so real, alive and physical that you would hardly be surprised to meet them on the street. Joanna Bator has thus inscribed her hometown of Wałbrzych, from which she left for Tokyo, New York, Berlin and London at the age of 19, on the map of world literature and secured a place in the memory of readers for the rebellious women from Poland,” Mayer continued, paying tribute to the 56-year-old writer. The award is endowed with 25,000 euros and was presented at a ceremony in the Mozarteum.
The great transformations of the 20th century
According to author Sabine Scholl, who gave the laudation, Bator’s novels report on the great transformations that Europe was subjected to in the 20th century – from National Socialism to Communism to Capitalism, with women being the losers in all systems – and their consequences to this day. “They show how crucial it is for the House of Europe to know more about the history of the eastern member states, which is closely interwoven with our own. They warn of ghosts that haunt us all and call on us not to remain silent, not to remain inactive.”
Bator herself stated in her acceptance speech that books change the world by changing people’s reality. “I am happy that my stories have the power to break down boundaries and bring people together in that collective realm of imagination that we all so desperately need.”
More about the person
Joanna Bator was born on February 2, 1968 and now lives as a university lecturer in Japan and Poland. She has received many awards. In 2013 she was awarded the Nike Prize, Poland’s most important literary prize, for her novel “Dunkel, fast Nacht”. Lisa Palmes’ translation, published in 2021, also caused a sensation in the German-speaking world. Esther Kinsky’s translations of the two related novels “Wolkenfern” and “Sandberg” were published in 2014 (and later awarded the Hermann Hesse Prize). Lisa Palmes’ translation of “Bitternis” received excellent reviews last year.
The Austrian State Prize for European Literature
Since 1965, the Austrian State Prize for European Literature has honored the literary works of a European author that have received particular international recognition, and German translations must also be available. Previous winners include Mircea Cărtărescu, Karl Ove Knausgård, Zadie Smith, Michel Houellebecq, Drago Jančar, László Krasznahorkai and Ali Smith. Last year, the Frenchwoman Marie NDiaye was honored.