Nobel Prize in Literature 2009 Speculation

[alik-vit]

Originally Posted by Eric

Ulrika Knutson (author): She hopes it'll be the Belarusian author Svietlana Alexievych.

It will be great choice. Really. It's a kind of literature of witnesses. Her books on Afganistan and Tchernobyl' are masterpieces. In russian Internet I see information on her nomination by Sweden Pen-club.

[Stewart]

Just want to say that once the announcement is made I'll be closing this speculation thread. Discussion of the laureate can continue on a new thread in the News Discussion forum, under the title of Nobel Prize in Literature 2009.

[kadare]

Ismail kadare

[saliotthomas]

If Tomas Tranströmer,or the muller woman get it,i will understand pecfetly the feeling some had last years with Le Clezio ,complete out of the blue.

Is this guy a plastic truck becoming a spaceship?




Anyway i'll miss the new,i'll be at a mini-day-out
Cheers.

[Eric]

I'd never heard of Svetlana Alexievich before, but I'll check her out on the net, whether or not she happens to win. The problem with Googling for her name is the usual one: the transliteration of the Cyrillic. So for each language, you have to change the transliteration. But I have found:

Svetlana Aleksievich: "War's Unwomanly Face"

ABM -- Writer Svetlana Aleksiyevich (Śviatłana Aleksiejevič) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Books by author Svetlana*Aleksievich

So by looking at various websites, you can piece together an idea of what she has written, and what is available in more accessible languages, such as English, French and German.

*

As for "the muller woman" (Saliotthomas), I borrowed Herta Müller's novel "Heute wär ich mir lieber nicht begegnet" (Rowohlt, 1997), plus the Dutch translation, so I am equipped, should she win. I've only read a few pages, but it deals with a woman summoned for interrogation in Ceausescu's Romania.

[alik-vit]

Svetlana Alexievich - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia her wiki page

[Stewart]

Looks like it won't be for another hour yet. The Nobel home page, for some reason, shows the current time (in GMT) as being 10:08 and not 11:08, which it actually is.

EDIT: Ah, we're on British Summer Time at the moment, which is an hour ahead of GMT. Sheesh!

[Damian Kelleher]

Just remember to breathe, Mr Stewart

[Daniel del Real]

Ok it's 5.30 in the morning here, so I barely slept. It better be worth it!

[alik-vit]

We are really crazy I postpone today my lecture It's 2.41 p.m. in SPb. Good time for all this waiting.

[anoush]

2mins away thank the lord - the background music of the webcast is driving me a little crazy.

anoush

[Daniel del Real]

Herta Müller, as expected

[anoush]

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Stewart]

Now that Herta Müller has been announced as the 2009 laureate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, discussion of the award will move away from speculation to talk of this year's prize and the recipient on this thread.