Walid Nabhan wins EU Prize for Literature

Maltese-Palestinian author Walid Nabhan has won the European Union Prize for Literature 2017 for his novel L-Ezodu tac-Cikonji.

The European Union Prize for Literature is awarded annually to 12 authors, recognising literary talent from all corners of Europe.

In a statement, L-Akkademja tal-Malti, which represents the prize on a local level, said that in nominating this year’s winner – something which is done in three-year intervals – the choice fell on Nabhan for his novel centred around a protagonist born to a refugee Palestinian family in Jordan who finds himself in Malta.

The protagonist in Nabhan’s novel creates a narrative of his experiences abroad and as a refugee within a large Palestinian community in Jordan, referring also his family’s experience in Palestine.

The novel emphasises relationships among people in the midst of a difficult situation, while also delving into the political nature of the forces that created it.

The national jury within the Akkademja comprised Stella Borg-Barthet, Stephen Bonanno, Norbert Ellul Vincenti, Marco Galea and Adrian Grima.

Winning authors of the European Union Prize for Literature receive a cash prize of €5,000, as well as gaining increased international visibility and cross-border promotion, starting at the awards ceremony in Brussels and continuing at Europe’s major book fairs.

The other two Maltese authors to win the prize were Immanuel Mifsud in 2011 and Pierre J. Mejlak in 2014.