On the eve of the end of this year’s edition of the Book Fair, the traditional prizes were awarded. In the ceremony held at the Palace of Youth and Sports in Pristina, authors, translators and researchers were appreciated, while special awards highlighted their contribution and influence in the world of the written word. Among the winners are the writers of the researcher Nazmi Rrahmani, Ben Blushi, Naime Beqiraj and Ben Andoni
A day before the conclusion of the 26th edition of the Book Fair in Pristina, the traditional awards of this event were distributed, evaluating titles, authors, translators and contributions that marked the year of publications. And the geography of the winners proves the common space of Albanian letters.
In the ceremony held, as always in the Palace of Youth in the capital, where the Fair takes place every year, the winners were announced in various categories with the permanent call for conditions. This year, the “Author of the Year” award was not awarded.
This year’s fair, which brought together dozens of publishing houses from Kosovo, Albania, North Macedonia and other Albanian territories, has brought thousands of titles and numerous meetings with authors, proving its role as the biggest book event in the country.
The prize jury is composed of Behar Gjoka, the chairperson, as well as members Majlinda Nana-Rama, Gani Bytyçi, Alketa Gashi-Fazliu and Marigona Kelmendi.
The researcher and writer Behar Gjoka has said that the evaluation of the works has been challenging.
“The task of the one who judges is difficult because I think there is no prize that does not belong to writers. I would like to say responsibly that it is decided on certain criteria. This prize is given only once per author, and we thought that there are good books, but also authors who have influence. Which means that if an author has held meetings, has been in communication with the reader, has been promoted with writings, in this sense there are supposed to be three special prizes that are for authors and the other prizes they are competitive prices”, he said.
The Special Award for Lifetime Achievement was awarded to the writer Nazmi Rrahmani, one of the most important names of Albanian literature in Kosovo. After accepting the award, he remembered the first edition of the Book Fair, in the first days of freedom.
“I understand the gratitude as a sign of one of the Fair’s organizations. I remember the first Fair in 1999 when for the first time the Albanian book was united in general. It was the first time when the book in the Albanian language was gathered in one place, at the Fair of Prishtina. There we also gathered many well-known writers, very well-known names who came not only to see books, but also to see the freedom in Kosovo”, said Rrahmani.
One of this year’s special awards was the one for the Albanian Author of the Fair with “God on the Throne”. It was awarded to the writer Ben Blushi for the novel “I am a Muslim”,
Blushi has said that this work has brought him many controversies.
“This book, which has caused me a lot of embarrassment, has poisoned my life a little, unfortunately. It has brought me into enmity with people I didn’t want, but now they love me a little less. It has given me pleasure, in the sense of literature. After all, the book for which I am receiving this special evaluation is only literature. It is not a political treatise or my opinion. It is literature, it is fiction”, he said.
He appreciated the common space of Albanian literature.
“I believe that Albanian literature, despite the divisions it has experienced and the cycles it has gone through, is a deserved European literature. I think that writers today produce books of a European level and we have no reason to feel bad, on the contrary, it is time to have more expansion in Europe and in the world”, he said further.
The organizer of the Fair, Edon Zeneli, before handing out the prize, said that “I am a Muslim” is among the most sought-after books in Kosovo and Albania.
“The most requested book at the Book Fair in Tirana and among the most requested books throughout the year in Kosovo,” said Zeneli, president of the Kosovo Publishers Association.
The Special Award for the Best Foreign Author was given to the Italian-French writer Francesco Rapazzini, a guest of this edition, who contented himself with a short thank you.
In the children’s literature category, Valbona Banka was awarded for the book “Escape without a plan”.
“It is always a beautiful emotion when your books are appreciated, but even more so when you are appreciated at a Fair as such a large library. I thank you for this organization and this appreciation. I am very grateful,” she said.
Naime Beqiraj received the prize for poetry for the collection “Mos i kallxo harrimin”. With the award, the poet paid tribute to the creators from whom she said she was inspired.
“I wanted this award to be a dedication to three men of Albanian literature who have left a mark on me. Unfortunately, none of them are alive. They have not been among us for years and decades. I continue literature. I want to pay a tribute up there in the sky, according to the order of death: Azem Shkreli, Ibrahim Rugova and Ali Podrimje”, she said.
The translator Albana Nexhipi-Lekaj was declared the translator of the year for the translation of the novel “Bija Italiane” by Soraya Lanes.
“I have been translating for over 25 years. There must be over 40 titles translated and this is the first award I have received for translation. It is a milestone in my career as a translator,” she said.
In the prose category, Andreas Dushi was awarded for the novel “Droja”.
“This award, the fact that it is shared by the Association of Publishers of Kosovo, shows something very important, that this institution is the association of Albanian publishers, which does not make any distinction between political borders, which does not happen in Albania”, he said.
Another prize for prose was awarded to Gazmend Krasniqi for the novel “How this love novel is written”.
“It is a book written in a contemporary way, with post-modernist goals, which play in the relationship with life, with phenomena, with characters, but it has some elements of post-modernism, perhaps fragmentarism”, he said.
In the study, criticism and essay category, Ben Andoni was awarded for the book “Albania of Letters”.
“The book includes almost one thousand and 400 original letters and the evaluation it received in Pristina, I don’t believe it will ever receive”, said Andoni.
Last year, Jetlira Avdijaj was awarded “Author of the year (Albanian literature)” for the book “Toka e babas” published by Botimet KOHA. Last year’s guest, the French Sophie Kepes, received the other, equally important award, “Author of the year” for the book entitled “Irrelevance”. Gani Bytyçi received the award for children’s and young people’s literature for the book “Letter lajleku”, while Ahmet Prençi received the prize for prose for the collection of stories “In the name of blood”.
Poetry awards were received by Shpëtim Selmani for “Curiosity and terror” and Arti Lushi for the work “The Lord of Salt”. In the field of translation, Zija Vukaj and Pandeli Pasko Kuteli were appreciated. The Special Prize of the Fair was received by Durim Abdullahu for his outstanding contribution to the publication of the book “The Kosovo War 1997-1999: A Selected Bibliography”. The “Albas” publishing house was honored with the award for capital work for the publication of the series of works by Petro Markos.
The distribution of prizes, on Saturday afternoon, marked one of the highlights of this year’s edition of the Book Fair in Pristina, which from June 17 brought promotions, literary discussions and meetings with authors.
