Nobel Prize in Literature 2015 Speculation

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Daniel del Real

Daniel del Real

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As our dear friend Septularisen just reminded me by e-mail, it's that time of the year again!

9 weeks before we have this year's laureate, which I assume will be announced October 8th. No idea if Ladbrokes or another house has any bets already, but it'll be worth checking.

So come on and start tossing up names as usual! :)
 
Mise Eire

Mise Eire

Reader
Well as of right now - copied directly from Ladbokes (with their misspellings). All familiar from previous years.

Svetlana Aleksijevitj 5/1
Haruki Murakami 6/1
Ngugi Wa Thiong'o 7/1
Philip Roth 8/1
Joyce Carol Oates 12/1
Adunis 16/1
Ismail Kadare 16/1

They also might want to remove E L Doctorow at 50/1
 
Septularisen

Septularisen

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Absolutely no idea for me this year...
So, for sure not a french writer... :)
I would say a poet in this case why not Ko UN or ADUNIS? or
an american writer Philip ROTH or Cormack McCARTHY or
why not an african writer? In this case Nurrudin FARAH or Ngugi Wa THIONG'O...
 
V

Vazquez

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A poet or an African writer would be interesting.

Some years ago, about 4 or 5, I´ve read the Academy sent an emmisary to North America to check possible candidates there. And the following year, the guy was sent to Africa. As in 2013 Munro won, maybe an African writer is on the horizon.

My favorite living African writer is Mia Couto, but I don´t think he will win. He doesn´t have a milestone in his work, imho, and he is not getting better as the years go by. It seems to me he found a niche and is riding in it.

The same with poets. My favorite is Ferreira Gullar, but I also can´t believe he will win. First, his main work is short - 7 books - probably half of Transtromer, i.e. Second, he repeats himself a lot, and many times about things that are not that poetic (politics). Third, altough he is a master of poetry, his other works (essays, short stories etc.) goes from very good to very bad. He is also an unreliable translator - his translations are good, but they never say from which language he translated, if he is translating a previous translation, etc. What I want to say is, if the Academy will judge his entire work - even the things he writes weekly to a Brazilian newspaper - he will never win.

Among the authors I´ve got to know since the last prize, the one I would be glad if he would won is Enrique Vila-Matas.
 
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Daniel del Real

Daniel del Real

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Probably we can rule out a male European novelist? If that's the case, farewell this year to Kadare or Nooteboom, both brilliant and deserving writers from countries/languages never awarded before.

I always start with the debts/omissions the Academy might have. I have to dismiss the most obvious, US writers. If Svenska Akademien would've wanted to award writers like Roth or McCarthy, they would've done it already. Don't see it happening.

On the other hand, a debt to be pay soon could be the black Africa. It's time already, almost thirty years since Soyinka won it, besides they have an ideal candidate like Ngugi who writes in gikuyu but is also largely published in English speaking markets.

Not very likely but desired it is to see an author writing in Portuguese as Nobel laureate for the second time. Everyone would say Lobo Antunes is the right one, but since I'm not a fan of his complexity without purpose, I endorse Goncalo M. Tavares, a young but very talented writer with enough credentials already despite his young age.
 
V

Vazquez

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Have anyone read Svetlana Aleksijevitj?

Last year I was a bit ambigous about Kadare winning, but I have read some works of other possible candidates (i.e., Roth, McCarthy, Murakami and Lobo Antunes)and now Kadare is, in my mind, quite worthy. Not that I want, but I wouldn´t complain. If things keep going that way, next year I will want!
 
H

Hrabal78

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Svetlana Aleksijevitj.....

I would be shocked if she won. A) She is more known for investigative journalism, and (B) her bibliography is pretty sparse....some short stories, some essays, a few books. Quite frankly, I am surprised that she is such a strong contender....although, granted, we are talking about Ladbrokes....

Now, Kadare, that is a worthy candidate. His political past may not help him much, but his writing is pretty darn good.
 
Septularisen

Septularisen

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Vazquez said:
My favorite living African writer is Mia Couto, but I don´t think he will win. He doesn´t have a milestone in his work, imho, and he is not getting better as the years go by. It seems to me he found a niche and is riding in it.

The same with poets. My favorite is Ferreira Gullar, but I also can´t believe he will win. First, his main work is short - 7 books - probably half of Transtromer, i.e. Second, he repeats himself a lot, and many times about things that are not that poetic (politics). Third, altough he is a master of poetry, his other works (essays, short stories etc.) goes from very good to very bad. He is also an unreliable translator - his translations are good, but they never say from which language he translated, if he is translating a previous translation, etc. What I want to say is, if the Academy will judge his entire work - even the things he writes weekly to a Brazilian newspaper - he will never win.

Among the authors I´ve got to know since the last prize, the one I would be glad if he would won is Enrique Vila-Matas.
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Mia COUTO will be a great pick, but I think he's a little younger for the Nobel Prize (as Haruki MURAKAMI...). The opposite for Ferreira GULLAR he's 84 years old...
Enrique VILA-MATAS? Why not, but another spanish writer so early after Mario VARGAS-LLOSA?
 
Daniel del Real

Daniel del Real

Moderator
Septularisen said:
Mia COUTO will be a great pick, but I think he's a little younger for the Nobel Prize (as Haruki MURAKAMI...). The opposite for Ferreira GULLAR he's 84 years old...
Enrique VILA-MATAS? Why not, but another spanish writer so early after Mario VARGAS-LLOSA?
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Couto is 60 and Murakami is 66, so age shouldn't be an obstacle. In the case of Goncalo Tavares, it could be as he is only 45 years old.

You can't consider Vargas Llosa as Spaniard; despite having double nationality all his works are set in Peru and he was announced as Peruvian writer when he was awarded the Nobel. In that case, last Spaniard to win the prize was Cela 25 years ago. I really like Vila-Matas but I think there are a few writers ahead of him as contenders, like Juan Goytisolo or Juan Marsé; even Javier Marías.
 
Septularisen

Septularisen

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Daniel del Real said:
I read Voices from Chernobyl last year and I liked it a lot. Can't tell if she's worthy of the prize with only one book read, but if the rest of her works have the same quality then for sure.
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I have read "Voices from Chernobyl" (La Supplication : Tchernobyl, chroniques du monde après l'apocalypse), and "War’s Unwomanly Face" (La Guerre n’a pas un visage de femme), and same I really liked a lot. I think this she's really a great great writer.
 
Septularisen

Septularisen

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Daniel del Real said:
Couto is 60 and Murakami is 66, so age shouldn't be an obstacle. In the case of Goncalo Tavares, it could be as he is only 45 years old.

You can't consider Vargas Llosa as Spaniard; despite having double nationality all his works are set in Peru and he was announced as Peruvian writer when he was awarded the Nobel. In that case, last Spaniard to win the prize was Cela 25 years ago. I really like Vila-Matas but I think there are a few writers ahead of him as contenders, like Juan Goytisolo or Juan Marsé; even Javier Marías.
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True here. In this supposition my favorite will be Javier MARIAS, but don't forget Antonio MUÑOZ-MOLINA and Arturo PÉREZ-REVERTE...
 
Sisyphus

Sisyphus

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I hope they award it to a writer from the Balkans this time. Hopefully to one in his late 70s :rolleyes:

I've read none of Svetlana's or Ngugi's works since they're not available in my language, so I can't judge if they deserve the prize. I'm looking forward to reading something by Svetlana, but I bet they won't bother translating her books unless she is awarded the Nobel.

On the other hand, it seems unfair to me , to award the prize to a 67-year-old lady who has published only 7 books as far as I can see, while there are older candidates who have written much much more than her and who could pass away any time :/

So I believe this will be Adunis' year
 
V

Vazquez

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Justareader said:
This year Laszlo Krasznahorkai received the Man Booker International Prize. Does it improve his chances of success or not?
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It would be an interesting choice. Another name that came to my mind is Jon Fosse.

To be sincere, I would not be impressed if another European male win, because there is a lot of options.
 
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Hrabal78

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I have brought this up before, but I am surprised that W.S. Merwin is never brought up. He really is one of America's greatest living poets. Much of his poetry, at least that which I read, is very beautiful. His more recent works/prose are also somewhat pertinent as they have to do with nature, preservation, and such (in light of all the recent environmental issues). He has around thirty poetry collections, has written plays, essays. He has won the Pulitzer twice, the National Book Award, the Tanning Prize, among other awards.
 
H

Hrabal78

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Looking over the Ladbrokes list....a few names, at least for me, are no brainers....William Trevor, Antonio Lobo Antunes, Kundera, Amos Oz, Roth, Rushdie, and Kadare. Unfortunately, I do not think any of them will be getting the call. William Trevor will, likely, get passed over because of Munro's win last year (even though, when it comes to the short story form, he is on par with Munro). Oz will get passed over because of the political climate in the Middle East. He is Israeli and, even though he is left leaning, with all the BDS stuff floating out there, well, I just do not see it. Unfair, but that is the way things are these days. Kadare's political past is not exactly favorable. Roth is too polarizing/popular....with Rushdie falling in the latter category. I think the ship has sailed on Kundera. He did publish a new novel, The Festival of Insignificance, in 2014 but that is about the only thing that he published in the past 15 years. He does not have much to show for in the "so what have you done lately" department.


I do see that Neil Gaiman is on the list....would love to see him win =), although he probably has as much chance as Bob Dylan =/
 
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