Advertisement

Murakami wins Danish literature prize

AFP/The Local
AFP/The Local - [email protected]
Murakami wins Danish literature prize
Haruki Murakami will receive the award in Odense. Photo: Facebook

Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami on Tuesday won Denmark's top literary award, the Hans Christian Andersen Prize, following in the footsteps of such writers as J.K. Rowling and Salman Rushdie.

Advertisement

The award, named after Denmark's famous fairytale creator H.C. Andersen, comes with a cheque for 500,000 kroner (67,000 euros, $71,400).
 
The jury honoured Murakami's "bold mix of classic narrative, pop culture, Japanese tradition, dreamlike realism and philosophical debate."
 
The 66-year-old, whose books have sold in the millions, has a cult following for his intricately-crafted tales of the absurdity and loneliness of modern life, and peppers his work with references to pop culture.
 
With works including 'Kafka on the Shore' and 'Norwegian Wood', he has repeatedly been tipped as a future Nobel laureate and has already received a number of other awards, including the Franz Kafka prize in 2006.
 
The prize-giving is due to take place in Odense, Andersen's hometown, in October 2016.
 
It has previously been awarded to Paolo Coehlo in 2007, J.K. Rowling in 2010, Isabel Allende in 2012 and Salman Rushdie in 2014.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also