"We have a lot of essays this year, which is a sort of challenge for the jury, as we have to define a boundary between literary essay, reportage or biography," points out Mykola Riabchuk, a Ukrainian writer and the President of the Jury of the Angelus Central European Literary Award. "This year is unique for Lithuania in that we have two authors shortlisted for the award: Kristina Sabaliauskaité and Alvydas Šlepikas," says Member of the Jury Piotr Kępiński. "The moment we receive a box with these seventy books is very likely to bring a heart attack. Each time I promise myself it's the last time I'm in the jury," says Professor Stanisław Bereś jokingly. "But a lot of these books have left an indelible mark on my memory. When I finally read them all, however, I feel like a swimmer after doing the English Channel. I am on my last legs and can hardly breathe," adds Professor Bereś.
Literary critic and jury member Krzysztof Masłoń has pointed out that Central European authors attract new readers. "In the mid-1990s you stood little to no chance to publish a book by a Serbian author for example. We were so fascinated by Anglosaxon literature that no other options were taken into account," he explains. "These days, a fair number of smaller publishing houses are active in the market, and the Angelus Award gives them a chance to attract wider readership," explains Krzysztof Masłoń.
What topics prevail in the books short-listed for this year's Angelus? They have little to do with the experience of Communism. "We are now passionate about other things, but the echoes and traumas of was still linger in literature. It's sad that that these issues are still defining for this part of Europe, but a lot of people find them important, myself included," adds Krzysztof Masłoń.
This year's Angelus Central European Literary Award has a slightly different Jury. Professor Andrzej Zawada is no longer Member of the Jury,. "Professor Zawada was appointed President of the Jury of the Silesius Poetry Award," says Jarosław Broda, Director of the Cultural Department at the Wroclaw City Office. His seat will be taken by Michał Nogaś, a literary critic who is also in the jury of the "Pióro Fredry" Award.
The award is funded by the City of Wroclaw and is presented to Central European authors from countries such as Albania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Germany, Poland, Russia, Ukraine or Hungary). Both the jury and publishing houses can enter books for the competition. If a foreign author happens to win the competition, his or her translator will also be awarded (20 thousand PLN). If the prize is carried off by a Polish author, a separate award will be presented to the translator of one of the short-listed books.
Additionally, Natalya Gorbanyevskaya (long-standing Member of the Jury) Readers' Award will be presented (the readers will be offered to vote for their favourite books online).
To date, the Angelus Central European Literary Award was carried off by Yurii Andrukhovych (Ukraine), Martin Pollack (Austria), Péter Esterhàzy (Hungary), Pavol Rankov (Slovakia) and Serhiy Zhadan (Ukraine).
Featured in the Angelus Award semifinals:
1. Hen Maciej, "Solfatara" /W.A.B./ 2. Hnatiuk Ola, "Odwaga i strach" [Courage and Fear] /Kolegium Europy Wschodniej/ 3. Janko Anna, "Mała zagłada" [Little Holocuast] /Wydawnictwo Literackie/ 4.Krištúfek Petr "Dom głuchego" [House of Deaf] /Książkowe Klimaty 5. Lis Renata, "W lodach Prowansji. Bunin na wygnaniu" [In the Ice of Provence. Bunin in Exile] /Sic!/ 6. Makhno Vasyl, "Listy i powietrze. Opowiadania pograniczne" [Letters and Air. Stories from the Borderland] /Wschodnia Fundacja Kultury "Akcent"/ 7. Nyaklyeyev Uladzimir, "Automat z wodą gazowaną z syropem lub bez" [Soda Fountain, with or without Syrup] /Kolegium Europy Wschodniej/ 8. Petrovskaya Katya, "Może Estera" [Maybe Esther] /Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego/ 9. Sabaliauskaité Kristina, "Silva rerum" /Znak/ 10. Szczerek Ziemowit, "Tatuaż z tryzubem" [Tatoo with the Tryzub] /Wydawnictwo Czarne/ 11. Szejnert Małgorzata, "Usypać góry. Historie z Polesia" [To Build the Mountains. Stories from Polesye] /Wydawnictwo Znak/ 12. Šlepikas Alvydas, "Mam na imię Maryté" [My Name is Maryté] /Kolegium Europy Wschodniej/ 13. Teodorescu Cristian, "Medgidia, miasto u kresu" [Medgidia, the City in the Marches] /Amaltea/ 14. Vosganian Varujan, "Księga szeptów" [Book of Whispers] /Książkowe Klimaty/
