Nobel Prize in Literature 2020 Speculation

[Daniel del Real]

What did you like about Four Books? I’ve read Serve the People and Dream of Ding Village and wasn’t too impressed.

Same here: Dream of Ding Village was not what I expected based on his reputation. On the contrary I enjoyed immensely To Live by Yu Hua. Of course none of my appreciations can be taken seriously after reading one novel by each writer.
In the scenario of a Chinese author winning, why not a poet instead of a novelist again? I'm thinking of Bei Dao or Duo Duo.

 

[Bartleby]

(Btw, Bartleby, do you have a link to that trailer? I’d love to see it.)

I believe it was this one

This thread is really getting going now! Great to see and to be honest lots of names I am not familiar with so looking forward to learning some more on all these writers. My biggest concern is that this award becomes a political one, I was full of admiration for the Committee last year, whether you appreciate Handke or not (I do and was delighted he won) it was a brave move. I’d hate to see the day an inferior writer wins to tick the politically correct box, not saying the writers mentioned here are ( like I say I don’t know a lot of them) but hopefully the quality of someone’s literature remains the critical point. The Nobel prize for literature and the Nobel Peace prize are not the same thing.

amen

 

[Daniel del Real]

I would be happy if Kadare won. His ouvre is definitely Nobel-worthy and it would be really nice for a writer in a rare language, with only 7.5 million speakers to win. It would show that you don't need to write in a language with rich literary history in order to write good literature.

I've been expecting this for a while. Hard to think it's going to happen now: his more recent works haven't been received well by the critics and he's 84 years old already. Him winning the Neustdat Prize this year might also hurt his chances. I hope I'm wrong as I love most of his books.

 

[Bartleby]

So, for the beginning I'm just very surprise that no one here give the name of Ludmila OULITSKAIA? I see this writer win the prize, if not this year, then with in the next 5 years.

What would you recommend by her?
I must confess I keep mistaking her for Petrushevskaya, another Lyudmila

 

[redhead]

Thanks, Bartleby!

Same here: Dream of Ding Village was not what I expected based on his reputation. On the contrary I enjoyed immensely To Live by Yu Hua. Of course none of my appreciations can be taken seriously after reading one novel by each writer.
In the scenario of a Chinese author winning, why not a poet instead of a novelist again? I'm thinking of Bei Dao or Duo Duo.

One of the misty poets would be a great pick, but i feel like their time has passed by (which of course means one will inevitably win in the near future)

 

[SpaceCadet]

I'm not very good at 'speculating' but I was wondering if any of you had an opinion about Adonis and Gerald Murnane as possible candidates. Also, are there any writer from India who could be considered? And how about a writer from the Caribean?

 

[SpaceCadet]

Comes personal taste or opinion, I see and I've been seeing Ko Un as a good contender; his oeuvre is accessible and quite widely meaningful, and leaving aside my liking for what I've read so far from him, I think Jon Fosse's work fits the bill very well.

 

[Camillo]

we need to consider a great writer represented in Hwang Sok-Yong's persona.

Which his books do you recommend at first? I haven't read anything from him.

 

[Johnny]

I'm not very good at 'speculating' but I was wondering if any of you had an opinion about Adonis and Gerald Murnane as possible candidates. Also, are there any writer from India who could be considered? And how about a writer from the Caribean?

Gerald Murnane would be a great choice, I think he has a good shot at it, he’s been getting more attention recently and a number of his books have been reissued. His style is unique, he’s frequently referred to as the Australian Proust. Personally I would be thrilled if he won and Australia is overdue a winner.

 

[hayden]

how about a writer from the Caribean?

If a Caribbean writer won, I think Franketienne (Haiti) would be a fantastic choice. I imagine he would be in consideration as long as somebody's around to nominate him. Main reason I'd like to see him win would be because his work would become move available...

Maryse Conde (Guadeloupe) is probably somewhat in talks, but I'm not sold she'll get it. Nancy Morejon of Cuba may also be a name floating around, but I've never read her work and know little about her. Linton Kwesi Johnson (Jamaica) is usually considered a musician foremost, but I wouldn't be surprised if he's scored a nomination or two in the last few years. Can't see any of them being a particular favourite this year though.

And like I said before, had Kamau Brathwaite (Barbados) not died earlier this year, I think he would have been a great choice. Fantastic poetry.

 

[Americanreader]

I really like Adonis, and I think he’d be a fine winner. He scratches the modernist itch for me, and I want more of his work in English! He has been in the conversation for a while so the committee might have passed him by, but I hope not! His Selected Poems from Yale has some really unique poems. I can’t say I always entirely understand his poems with their references to Arabic poetry and Middle Eastern life, but a lot of his imagery and lines are dazzling.

 

[Ater Lividus Ruber & V]

Some quick sleuthing.

I noticed the library website has this announcement: "Nobelbiblioteket har, med anledning av coronavirusets spridning, stängt på obestämd tid. Inga nya boklån kan göras och redan utlånade böcker behöver inte återlämnas förrän vi har öppnat igen."

The library is closed because of COVID-19. It says no new books can be loaned out but that books currently on-loan don't need to be returned until the library reopens. Referencing Waybackmachine, it appears this notice popped-up around May 20th (https://web.archive.org/web/20200520083313/http://www.nobelbiblioteket.se/).

From this I'd like to raise two points.

1. This may only affect the general public, not the Academy Members.

2. If books on-loan to the general public can't be returned, does the website show old due-dates or updated ones?

If it's the former (old dates), it's safe to assume on-loan dates in or past July are from Academy Members, as the public's 30-day loan period from May 20th wouldn't go into July.

Some authors I saw with July dates are Annie Ernaux, Can Xue, and László Krasznahorkai.

(Also glad everyone is safe and healthy despite the virus!)

 

[Ludus]

Some quick sleuthing.

I noticed the library website has this announcement: "Nobelbiblioteket har, med anledning av coronavirusets spridning, stängt på obestämd tid. Inga nya boklån kan göras och redan utlånade böcker behöver inte återlämnas förrän vi har öppnat igen."

The library is closed because of COVID-19. It says no new books can be loaned out but that books currently on-loan don't need to be returned until the library reopens. Referencing Waybackmachine, it appears this notice popped-up around May 20th (https://web.archive.org/web/20200520083313/http://www.nobelbiblioteket.se/).

From this I'd like to raise two points.

1. This may only affect the general public, not the Academy Members.

2. If books on-loan to the general public can't be returned, does the website show old due-dates or updated ones?

If it's the former (old dates), it's safe to assume on-loan dates in or past July are from Academy Members, as the public's 30-day loan period from May 20th wouldn't go into July.

Some authors I saw with July dates are Annie Ernaux, Can Xue, and László Krasznahorkai.

(Also glad everyone is safe and healthy despite the virus!)

I'd be more than happy with Laszlo or Can Xue, but I read Ernaux's Je ne suis pas sortie de ma nuit and I thought it was really good but not really impressive, although I've heard that Les Années is her masterpiece. What do you guys think about her?

 

[Johnny]

Let me put 3 more names into the mix. Cormac McCarthy, an old master who I think certainly came close a few years ago, Blood Meridian, The Road and The Border Trilogy being modern masterpieces. His themes of American violence, destruction of the planet and apocalypse suddenly very topical again.

And Drago Jancar, I know he won another literary prize recently, I have only started to read his work but he seems to have a very strong reputation and would appear to be exactly the kind of writer that would appeal to the Committee.

Finally Mircea Carterescu, he seems to have been one of the favourites recently, frustratingly some of his major works are not yet available in English. Blinding was outstanding and Nostalgia is on my to read this year list.

 

[JCamilo]

I dont think any Brazilian has any chance to be nominated. I doubt the Nobel would go to promote a country that have a president that attacks culture and literature constantly and is promoting a genocide on native populations. If there was a brazilain writer in exile, openly attacking the governament, to be promoted, it could be considered, but now? With our institutions destroyed? And Adélia barely fits the "profile", already 84, woman, portuguese language. Our country will not do the work needed to "promote" her for the Nobel, since she finally woke from her slumber and write against Bozo (despite having supported the cup that lead to Bozo). She could be a good winner, etc. but I doubt it.

 

[Americanreader]

I'd be more than happy with Laszlo or Can Xue, but I read Ernaux's Je ne suis pas sortie de ma nuit and I thought it was really good but not really impressive, although I've heard that Les Années is her masterpiece. What do you guys think about her?

I really enjoyed Les Années, she managed to write about memories the way they feel, kind of disjointed and fragmented but with a recognizable flow. I can’t speak for her other stuff though

 

[redhead]

Some quick sleuthing.

I noticed the library website has this announcement: "Nobelbiblioteket har, med anledning av coronavirusets spridning, stängt på obestämd tid. Inga nya boklån kan göras och redan utlånade böcker behöver inte återlämnas förrän vi har öppnat igen."

The library is closed because of COVID-19. It says no new books can be loaned out but that books currently on-loan don't need to be returned until the library reopens. Referencing Waybackmachine, it appears this notice popped-up around May 20th (https://web.archive.org/web/20200520083313/http://www.nobelbiblioteket.se/).

From this I'd like to raise two points.

1. This may only affect the general public, not the Academy Members.

2. If books on-loan to the general public can't be returned, does the website show old due-dates or updated ones?

If it's the former (old dates), it's safe to assume on-loan dates in or past July are from Academy Members, as the public's 30-day loan period from May 20th wouldn't go into July.

Some authors I saw with July dates are Annie Ernaux, Can Xue, and László Krasznahorkai.

(Also glad everyone is safe and healthy despite the virus!)

Good to see you, ALRV. Hope you’re doing ok

Anecdotally, my local library just keeps pushing back the due dates. As in, I had some books due back in mid May, but when that date rolled around, the system automatically pushed them back to mid June. (That said, unless those authors have some super fans in Stockholm, I don’t think it’s the general populace who has all their books checked out.)

And Bartleby, thanks for sharing that trailer! It’s definitely an intriguing interpretation of Fosse’s work. Haven’t gotten around to that specific play yet. Have you?

 

[Marba]

...And how about a writer from the Caribean?

If a Caribbean writer won, I think Franketienne (Haiti) would be a fantastic choice. I imagine he would be in consideration as long as somebody's around to nominate him. Main reason I'd like to see him win would be because his work would become move available...

Maryse Conde (Guadeloupe) is probably somewhat in talks, but I'm not sold she'll get it. Nancy Morejon of Cuba may also be a name floating around, but I've never read her work and know little about her. Linton Kwesi Johnson (Jamaica) is usually considered a musician foremost, but I wouldn't be surprised if he's scored a nomination or two in the last few years. Can't see any of them being a particular favourite this year though.

And like I said before, had Kamau Brathwaite (Barbados) not died earlier this year, I think he would have been a great choice. Fantastic poetry.

A Caribbean writer who's started to get got a lot of attention from the press here in Sweden is Jamaica Kincaid, what do you guys think about her as a potential laureate?

 

[Liam]

Kincaid hasn't published anything in 15 years, I don't know if this matters or not. I heard conflicting things about her novels; some people think they're wonderful while others view them as thinly disguised autobiographies. She wouldn't be a terrible choice but somehow I think there are many other, more "solid" names that ought to be considered first.

 

[Septularisen]

True, but as long as they're alive I think they both have a decent chance.

Why not? In 2018 a 96 year old guy won the Physic Nobel Prize...

My main fear against F. Sionil Jose is that if they wanted him to get the award he probably would have won 20 or so years ago, but I can't help but feel he deserves it. He's a fantastic, unique, and influential writer with a worldwide audience and a tremendous bibliography behind him, yet somehow he's still not particularly 'mainstream'.

This is not true. I can guarantee you, no one knows his name here in France...