The University of Oklahoma and its international literary journal, World Literature Today, jointly sponsor the Neustadt International Prize for Literature, which is given out every two years. It is sometimes likened to the Nobel Prize in Literature as one of the more prominent international literary awards.
Read: Sahitya Akademi Award: Winners, History, Nomination Process
In 1982, The New York Times referred to the award as “The Oklahoma Nobel,” and today, it is occasionally termed the “American Nobel.” About 30 of its laureates, nominees, or jurors have also received Nobel Prizes since it was formed in 1970. Like the Nobel Prize, it is given to someone for their whole body of work rather than just one piece.
Neustadt International Prize - History
Ivar Ivask, editor of Books Abroad, founded the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 1969 as the Books Abroad International Prize for Literature. The prize was then renamed the Books Abroad/Neustadt Prize, and in 1976 it was given its current name. It is one of the very few worldwide awards for which poets, novelists, and playwrights are all equally eligible, and it is the first international literary award of this magnitude to originate in the United States.
Nomination Process for Neustadt Prize for Literature
An impartial jury of at least seven people chooses the candidates. There are no restrictions on choice based on location, language, or genre.
One author is put forward by each juror for the award. The winner is revealed during the gala commemorating the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature after the jury members meet for two to three days at the University of Oklahoma to deliberate.
Read: Learn complete difference between BlueRose’s Expert publishing v/s DIY publishing.
The only such international literary prize established in the US is the Neustadt International Prize for Literature. It is one of the few international awards where playwrights, poets, and novelists can all compete.
A $50,000 cash prize, an eagle feather replica made of silver, and a prize certificate are given to Neustadt Prize winners.
Neustadt International Prize Winner 2022
In 2022, Senegalese writer Boubacar Boris Diop won the prize for his novel Murambi: The Book of Bones. He is a novelist, screenwriter, and journalist. Murambi, le livre des ossements, his best-known work, is a fictionalised description of a notorious massacre that took place during the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
Among Indian writers, Raja Rao won this award in 1988 and Rohinton Mistry, an India-born Canadian author won this prize in 2012.
Boubacar Boris Diop - Neustadt International Prize for Literature Winner 2022
The prize must be presented in honour of exceptional success in poetry, fiction, or drama, and it must be given entirely on the basis of literary merit, according to the Neustadt Prize’s charter. Any living author who writes in any language is eligible as long as at least a percentage of his or her work is published in English, which will be the language of the jury discussions. The award may be used to highlight a significant corpus of ongoing effort or to cap off a career of accomplishment. (Applications for the prize are not accepted.)
With only one exception—José Portugal’s Saramago, who had already won a Nobel Prize before being considered for the Neustadt—34 of the prize’s winners, finalists, or jurors have received Nobel Prizes in the preceding 51 years, demonstrating the significance of the Neustadt International Prize for Literature.
For authors that publish with BlueRose Publishers, we also give out BlueRose Awards. The prize aims to honour notable literary luminaries in the field of literature, regardless of their genre, language, or geographic location. The BlueRose Book Awards are intended to recognise writers who have persistently fought to advance society.
The mission of BlueRoseONE is to compile under one roof the numerous true stories of both established and upcoming authors. This section will give readers and writers a forum to discuss and delve into the many facets of an author’s journey.
