2013 EU Prize for Literature: Awards ceremony

Tonight (26 November), this year’s 12 best new or emerging authors in Europe will receive their award during a gala ceremony to be held at Concert Noble, in Brussels. The winners of the 2013 EU Prize for Literature (EUPL) are: Isabelle WÉRY (Belgium), Faruk ŠEHIĆ (Bosnia Herzegovina), Emilios SOLOMOU (Cyprus), Kristian BANG FOSS (Denmark), Meelis FRIEDENTHAL (Estonia), Lidija DIMKOVSKA (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia), Katri LIPSON (Finland), Marica BODROŽIĆ (Germany), Tullio FORGIARINI (Luxembourg), Ioana PÂRVULESCU (Romania), Gabriela BABNIK (Slovenia) and Cristian CRUSAT (Spain).

The awards will be presented by Culture, Education, Multilingualism and Youth Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou, in the presence of the European Parliament's Culture and Education Committee Chairwoman Doris Pack. The ceremony will also be attended by Culture Ministers of this year's participating countries and by other leading figures of the worlds of literature, culture and politics.

Organised by the European Commission in co-operation with the European Booksellers Federation, the European Writers' Council and the Federation of European Publishers, the competition is open to authors in the 37 countries involved in the EU Culture Programme. The winners, nominated by national juries, will receive € 5,000 and will be given priority to receive EU translation grants through the new support programme for Europe's cultural and creative sectors from 2014, Creative Europe. The translation of the 43 EUPL winners’ books since 2009 already allowed them to be read by a much larger audience throughout Europe.

Commissioner Vassiliou said: "My warmest congratulations go to this year's winners of the European Union Prize for Literature. The Prize celebrates fantastic new or emerging authors from all over Europe and helps them to gain international visibility and recognition beyond their home countries. Our long-term aim is to contribute to creating a genuine European readership and to promote our continent's rich cultural and linguistic diversity. I am delighted that our new Creative Europe programme will continue to support the Prize, as well as funding the translation of 4,500 books and other literary works."

“This year again we have excellent EUPL winners. It is so exciting for the bookseller that I am to discover new talents. A few months ago, I was asked by publishers, who were preparing their 'Get caught reading' campaign, what my favourite book was. I answered that I had no favourite book because as a bookseller, every time I get a delivery of new books to the bookshop I feel like a child at Christmas. This is how I feel this year again with the 2013 EUPL winners. European literature absolutely deserves to be celebrated and as president of the European Booksellers Federation, this year again, I am delighted to be here,” said John McNamee.

"The EU Prize for Literature is a stirring affirmation of human creativity, of the power and importance of story-telling, and of the excitement engendered by recognising and supporting new talent. The icing on the cake is that, thanks to EU funding for translation of the winning books, literature has a powerful role in helping to bring nations together. The EWC appreciates the work and dedication of all involved, and sends its congratulations to the winning authors from each country," said European Writers' Council Vice-President Nick Yapp.

Federation of European Publishers President Piotr Marciszuk added: “I would like to congratulate warmly our 2013 EUPL winners and wish them all the best for the future. Each of them, by sharing their culture, language and inner world with us, contributes to the diversity of Europe. The prize is the occasion to celebrate literature and our cultural heritage, something we should rightly be proud of.”

Share this article: