Literature year 2020

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Overview of the Literature
Years Further events

Events

Sales in the German retail book trade show some severe slumps as a result of the measures against the COVID-19 pandemic in March and April 2020.
March / April: The selection process for the International DUBLIN Literary Award , the world's highest prize for a single work at 100,000 euros, will be suspended or interrupted for 2020 and 2021.
May 14th: The Cologne City Council unanimously decides to support the maintenance of the lit.Cologne literature festival with "expenses of up to € 500,000 for the structure-securing measure and the further development / reorganization of the 2020/2021 literature festival" from economic development funds .

May 15: The bookseller Jürgen Schleicher , founder of Jürgen's bookstore in Berlin-Dahlem in 1968, dies in Berlin at the age of 77 .

May 22nd: With the support of the German Research Foundation , the Free University of Berlin will publish a complete critical edition of the works of the philosopher Hannah Arendt in 17 volumes, which will for the first time include all of Arendt's published and unpublished texts.

0June 4: In anticipation of a book publication announced for November 2020, the fairy tale Der Ickabog by JK Rowling will be published free of charge on the Internet for seven weeks in a translation by Friedrich Pflüger, also in German .

17.-21. June: 44th Days of German-Language Literature (Klagenfurt)

26 June: For the first time in his career succeeds Bob Dylan , Nobel Prize winner of 2016, with his 39th studio album Rough and Rowdy Ways the first place the German album charts to achieve.

0July 2: The Austrian Federal Ministry for Art, Culture, Public Service and Sport awarded five Robert Musil scholarships as long-term scholarships over 36 months with a total of 57,600 euros each to Oswald Egger , Milena Michiko Flašar , Laura Freudenthaler , Karin Peschka and Lisa Spalt forgive.

July 17th: The Italian Germanist, translator and editor Enrico Ganni dies in Turin at the age of 70 .

July 22nd: The text Kalkstein by Esther Kinsky is awarded the first W. G. Sebald Literature Prize.

0August 1st: Barbara Laugwitz becomes managing director at dtv ; Karsten Kredel will be her successor as Managing Director of Ullstein Buchverlage .

14.-18. October: Frankfurt Book Fair (with “Hygiene Concept”); In mid-July 2020 it will be announced that Aufbau-Verlag , Verlag CH Beck , Klett-Cotta Verlag and Suhrkamp Verlag will be participating in the fair with a joint stand.

Died in 2020

Public domain 2020

The works of the following writers who died in 1949 have been in the public domain since January 1, 2020 :

German-speaking authors

Foreign language authors

See also Public Domain 2020 on Wikisource

New releases

Novels, short stories

Work - Thorsten Nagelschmidt
The window to heaven - Elisabeth Escher
Tara and Tahnee - Lost in the Valley of Gold (children's book) - Patrick Hertweck

Non-fiction

The big no - Armin Nassehi
The Room Where It Happened - John R. Bolton
Too Much and Never Enough - Mary L. Trump

Literature prizes 2020

German literary prizes

Alfred Döblin scholarships : Marie Gamillscheg , Kerstin Kempker , André Kubiczek , Luo Lingyuan , Regina Scheer , Deniz Utlu and three other authors

Annette von Droste Hülshoff Prize : Michael Roes

Berlin Literature Prize : Thomas Meinecke

Bertolt Brecht Literature Prize : Sibylle Berg

Bonn town clerk : Ulla Lenze

Bremen Literature Prize : Barbara Honigmann for Georg (main prize); Tonio Schachinger for Not like you (sponsorship award)

Carl Zuckmayer Medal : Maren Kroymann

Clemens Brentano Prize : Levin Westermann for regarding the shadows (poetry)

Comic book award : Sibylla by Max Baitinger

German Science Fiction Award - Best German-Language Novel: The Cube by Bijan Moini

Dieter Wellershoff Scholarship :

Adrian Kasnitz with the novel project Der Schatten
Tilman Strasser with the novel project Gespinst

Dresden town clerk : Franzobel

Düsseldorf Literature Prize : Jackie Thomae for brothers

Eichendorff Literature Prize : Saša Stanišić for Origin

Evangelical Book Prize : Winter Bees by Norbert Scheuer

Friedrich Gerstäcker Prize : Electric Fish by Susan Kreller

Georg Büchner Prize : Elke Erb

Georg Dehio Book Prize :

Main prize: Ulla Lachauer for her literary oeuvre
Sponsorship award: Volga children by Gusel Jachina

Gerty Spies Literature Prize : Milo Rau

Goethe Prize of the City of Frankfurt am Main : Dževad Karahasan

Hannelore Greve Literature Prize : Klaus Modick

Hans Fallada Prize : Saša Stanišić for Origin

Heinrich Mann Prize : Eva Horn

Heinrich Maria Ledig Rowohlt Prize : Volker Oldenburg

Helmut M. Braem Translator Award : Miriam Mandelkow for her translation Of This World by James Baldwin and her other retransmissions by this author

Hölty Prize for Poetry: Marion Poschmann for her extensive lyrical oeuvre (with special emphasis on the volume Nimbus )

Radio play award of the war blind : AUDIO.SPACE.MACHINE by wittmann / zeitblom

Hotlist : The candidates for the 2020 hotlist

Hugo Ball Prize : Bov Bjerg ; Sponsorship award: Kinga Tóth

Jakob Wassermann Literature Prize : Clemens J. Setz

Jane Scatcherd Prize : Claudia Steinitz

Johann Heinrich Merck Prize for literary criticism and essay : Iris Radisch

Johann Peter Hebel Prize : Sibylle Berg (awarded in May 2021)

Joseph Breitbach Prize : Nora Bossong

Kassel Literature Prize for Grotesque Humor : Heinz Strunk (main prize)

Catholic Children's and Young People's Book Prize : Electric Fish by Susan Kreller

Kleist Prize : Clemens J. Setz

Klopstock Prize for New Literature : Clemens Meyer for his complete works (main prize)

Literature Prize of the Jürgen Ponto Foundation : Deniz Ohde for scattered light

Literature Prize of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation : Hans Pleschinski

"Text & Language" literary prize from the German Business Culture Group : Maren Kames

400th Lynx of the month (May): When I stole the giant's plums by Ulf Stark with illustrations by Regina Kehn , translated by Birgitta Kicherer

Ludwig Börne Prize : Christoph Ransmayr

Orphil Poetry Prize :

Main prize: Marion Poschmann for her previous lyrical work and especially for the band Nimbus

Debut award : Eva Maria Leuenberger for decarnation

Mainz town clerk : Eugen Ruge

Margarete Schrader Prize for Literature : Michael Roes

Märkisches scholarship for literature : Giulia Becker

Lower Rhine Literature Prize : Ulla Lenze

Paul Scheerbart Prize : Simon Werle for his new translations of the Fleurs du Mal and the Spleen de Paris by Charles Baudelaire

Peter Huchel Prize for Poetry: Vogelwerk by Henning Ziebritzki (awarded in April 2021)

Fantastic Prize of the City of Wetzlar : At the bottom of heaven by Joana Osman

Leipzig Book Fair Prize :

Fiction : Stern 111 by Lutz Seiler
Non-fiction / essay writing : Feeling cancer. A story of emotions from the 20th century by Bettina Hitzer
Translation : Oreo by Fran Ross as translated from the English by Pieke Biermann

LiteraTour North Prize : Ulrike Draesner

Prize of the literary houses : Marlene Streeruwitz

Rheingau Literature Prize : Annette Pehnt for everything you see is new

Robert Gernhardt Prize :

Sven Amtsberg for his novel project Rakete Schmidt
Fatma Aydemir for her novel project Dschinns
Thomas Hettche for his novel project Im Arvenschatten

Seraph (Fantastic Literature Prize):

Best fantastic novel: Christoph Marzi with midnight
Best debut: Bijan Moini with Der Würfel
Best independent title: Erik Kellen and Mira Valentin with Windherz

City clerk of Bergen (2020/2021): Anne Weber

Straelen Translator Prize from the Kunststiftung NRW (main prize): Hans-Christian Oeser for translating Sebastian Barry's novel Tage ohne Ende from English

Thomas Mann Prize : Nora Bossong

Ginkgo Biloba translator award for poetry : Richard Pietraß

Uwe Johnson Prize : Irina Liebmann for Die Große Hamburger Straße

Walter Hasenclever Literature Prize : Marica Bodrožić

Wilhelm Lehmann Prize : Nora Bossong for protection zone

Wolfgang Koeppen Prize : Marcus Braun (awarded in June 2021)

Requests to speak : Peasant war panorama by Kathrin Röggla (main prize)

International literary prizes

Alemannic Literature Prize : Christoph Keller for the novel The floor beneath your feet

Anna Seghers Prize : Hernán Ronsino for his “Pampa Trilogy” and Ivna Žic for her debut novel The Descendants

Anton Wildgans Prize : Reinhard Kaiser-Mühlecker

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Prize : Baek Hee Na

Brücke Berlin Literature and Translator Prize : Marija Stepanowa as the author and Olga Radetzkaja as the translator for After Memory

Carnegie Medal : Lark by Anthony McGowan

German-Italian translator award (selection):

Award for the best translation: The Catholic School of Edoardo Albinati in the translation by Verena von Koskull

Lifetime achievement award: Friederike Hausmann

Encore Award : Throw Me to the Wolves by Patrick McGuinness

Erich Fried Prize : Esther Kinsky

Hans Christian Andersen Literature Prize : Karl Ove Knausgård

Hans Christian Andersen Prize : Jacqueline Woodson (as author) and Albertine Zullo (as illustrator)

Harder Literature Prize : Luke 5 (short story) by Sonja M. Schultz

Ida Gerhardt Poetry Award : Fantoommerrie by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld

Ingeborg Bachmann Prize : On getting up from Helga Schubert

Deutschlandfunk Prize: Fighting for certain worlds and against others by Lisa Krusche
Kelag Prize: Always at War by Egon Christian Leitner
3sat Prize: The summer hottest of Laura Freudenthaler
BKS Bank Audience Award (with a scholarship from the City of Klagenfurt for the author): The great greeting from Lydia Haider

International Prize for Arabic Fiction : The Royal Court by Abdelouahab Aissaoui

International Hermann Hesse Prize : Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (author) and Judith Schwaab (translator) for blue hibiscus

International Literature Prize - House of World Cultures :

Happy cases by Yevgenia Belorusets , translated from Russian by Claudia Dathe
The circle of literature lovers of Amir Hassan Cheheltan , from Farsi translated by Jutta Himmelreich
The Meek by Angel Igov , translated from Bulgarian by Andreas Tretner
What a miracle by James Noël , translated from the French by Rike Bolte
The weeping of the birds by Chigozie Obioma , translated from English by Nicolai von Schweder-Schreiner
Great decoration by Isabel Waidner , translated from English by Ann Cotten

Jean Améry Prize for European Essay Writing: Ivan Krastev

Kate Greenaway Medal : Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan

Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award : Girl by Edna O'Brien

Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding : László F. Földényi for Praise of Melancholy. Mysterious messages

LiBeraturpreis : Lina Atfah for The Book of the Missing Arrival (poems)

European Union Literature Prize (selection):

Germany: The sad guest of Matthias Nawrat
Estonia: Poola poisid ("Polish Boys") from Mudlum
Luxembourg: The Mutations of Francis Kirps

Miles Franklin Award : The Yield by Tara June Winch

ORF radio play award of the criticism : GEH DICHT DICHTIG! by Ruth Johanna Benrath

Austrian Children's and Youth Book Prize (selection):

One day you will ... by Leonora Leitl
The Vogelschorsch by Hannes Wirlinger (text) and Ulrike Möltgen (illustrations)

Austrian Art Prize for Children's and Youth Literature : Renate Habinger

Austrian Art Prize for Literature : Kathrin Röggla

Austrian State Prize for European Literature : Drago Jančar

Austrian State Prize for Cultural Journalism : Thomas Macho

Otherwise Award (for 2019): Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

Outstanding Artist Award for children's and youth literature : Leonora Leitl

Outstanding Artist Award for Literature : Gertraud Klemm

Peter Rosegger Literature Prize : Ferdinand Schmalz

European Literature Prize : David Grossman

Premio Alfaguara de Novela : Salvar el fuego by Guillermo Arriaga

Princess of Asturias Prize for Literature : Anne Carson

Prix Servais : The Mutations by Francis Kirps

Pulitzer Prizes (selection):

Fiction : The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead (again awarded after 2017)
Drama : A Strange Loop by Michael R. Jackson
Poetry : The Tradition of Jericho Brown
Biography / Autobiography : Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser
Story : Sweet Taste of Liberty: A True Story of Slavery and Restitution in America by W. Caleb McDaniel
Non-fiction :
- The Undying: Pain, Vulnerability, Mortality, Medicine, Art, Time, Dreams, Data, Exhaustion, Cancer, and Care by Anne Boyer as well
- The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America by Greg Grandin
Review : Christopher Knight ( Los Angeles Times )
Feature Writing : Ben Taub ( The New Yorker )
Special Citation: Ida B. Wells - "For her outstanding and courageous reporting on the horrific and vicious violence against African Americans during the era of lynching."

Rauris Literature Prize (selection): Our Father by Angela Lehner

Reinhard Priessnitz Prize : Elias Hirschl

Samuel Bogumil Linde Prize : Dea Loher and Dorota Masłowska

Swiss literary prizes (selection):

tinnitus tropic by Flurina Badel
Missed places by Christoph Geiser
Welcome to the valley of tears of Noëmi Lerch
I am the one my mother warned me about by Demian Lienhard
“Swiss Grand Prix Literature”: Sibylle Berg ; Special price for translation: Marion Graf

Siegfried Lenz Prize : Ljudmila Ulizkaja (awarded in March 2021)

Solothurn Literature Prize : Monika Helfer (awarded in 2021)

Spycher: Leuk Literature Prize : Helena Janeczek

Tomas Tranströmpriset : Louise Glück

Usedom Literature Prize : Saša Stanišić for Origin

Veza Canetti Prize of the City of Vienna : Elisabeth Reichart

Wingate Literary Prize : A Stranger City by Linda Grant

Related awards and honors

AH Heineken Prize for History : Lorraine Daston
Antiquarian Prize : Christoph Meckel
Barbara Kisseler Theater Prize : " platform Festival " in the Ernst-Deutsch-Theater (Hamburg)
Library of the year :
- Library of the year (national): Technical Information Library (Hanover)
- Library of the year in small communities and regions: Gotha City Library
Carl von Ossietzky Prize for Contemporary History and Politics : Carolin Emcke
German Publishing Prize : The Prize Winners 2020
- Top award winners named “outstanding publishers”: DOM publishers , Liebeskind and Matthes & Seitz Berlin
Peace Prize of the German Book Trade : Amartya Sen
Gerda Henkel Prize : Lorraine Daston
Goethe Medal (selection): Ian McEwan ; Zukiswa Wanner
Heinrich Heine Prize of the City of Düsseldorf : Rachel Salamander
Hessian publishing price : Verlag Vittorio Klostermann (main prize); Gutleut Verlag (special price)
Johann Philipp Palm Prize : Bushra Al-Maktari and Gui Minhai
Kluge Prize : Danielle Allen
Kurt Wolff Prize : Arco Verlag ; Sponsorship award: Verlag Hentrich & Hentrich
Max Brauer Prize : Compagnia dell'Argine, San Lazzaro (Northern Italy)
Max and Moritz Prize (selection):
- Best German-speaking comic artist: Anna Haifisch
- Best comic for kids: Manno! Everything happens exactly as it is in real life from Anke Kuhl
- Audience award: Heavy wrinkle from @kriegundfreitag
- Special award for an outstanding life's work: Anke Feuchtenberger
Princess of Asturias Prize for Communication and Human Sciences : Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara and Hay Festival of Literature & Arts
Robert Schumann Prize for Poetry and Music : Olga Neuwirth
Salzburg bull :
- Sarah Bosetti (Germany)
- Renato Kaiser (Switzerland)
- Florian Scheuba (Austria)
The 25 most beautiful German books : The 2020 award winners
Sigmund Freud Prize for Scientific Prose : Ute Frevert
Tabori price :
- Grand Prize: Gob Squad
- Awards: Anta Helena Recke ; Christoph Winkler
Theater Prize Berlin : Sandra Hüller (Awarded at the "Berliner Theatertreffen" 2021)
Ulrich Wildgruber Prize : Lilith Stangenberg
Order of Merit of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (selection): Carolin Emcke
Weimar Prize : Sigrid Damm

Individual evidence

↑ Corona crisis and book trade sales: product range with a sharp decline in March , boersenblatt.net, April 9, 2020, accessed on April 10, 2020

↑ Sales development in the retail book trade up to April 2020 , de.statista.com, May 7, 2020, accessed on May 15, 2020

^ " Important Update ", dublinliteraryaward.ie, accessed on May 16, 2020

↑ City of Cologne grants financial injection - lit.cologne is saved! , boersenblatt.net, May 15, 2020, accessed on May 16, 2020

↑ Structure- securing measure and further development / reorganization of the 2020/2021 literature festival , ratsinformation.stadt-koeln.de, May 14, 2020, accessed on May 16, 2020

↑ Jürgen Schleicher , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on May 26, 2020

↑ FU Berlin publishes Hannah Arendt Complete Edition , berlin.de, published and accessed on May 22, 2020

↑ Carlsen publishes the previously unpublished fairy tale “Der Ickabog” by JKRowling , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on June 4, 2020

↑ Bachmann Prize online with 7 authors from Germany , deutschlandfunkkultur.de, published and accessed on May 28, 2020 (brief information)

↑ "44. Days of German-Language Literature "in Klagenfurt , ots.at, published and accessed on May 28, 2020 (detailed information, with details of the participants)

↑ Bob Dylan has never succeeded in doing this in Germany , rollingstone.de, published and accessed on June 26, 2020

↑ 1.31 million euros for Austrian authors , boersenblatt.net, published and accessed on July 3, 2020

↑ Michael Krüger : "The poor Heinrich": An obituary for Enrico Ganni , boersenblatt.net, published and accessed on July 24, 2020

↑ W. G. Sebald Literature Prize goes to the author Esther Kinsky , buchmarkt.de, July 22, 2020, accessed on July 25, 2020

↑ Barbara Laugwitz leaves Ullstein , deutschlandfunkkultur.de, published and accessed on June 9, 2020

↑ Flash message: Barbara Laugwitz is leaving Ullstein - and will be the new publisher of dtv , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on June 9, 2020

↑ Karsten Kredel becomes Managing Director of Ullstein Buchverlage , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on June 22, 2020

↑ The Frankfurt Book Fair is to take place , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on May 27, 2020

↑ Official website of the Frankfurt Book Fair , buchmesse.de, accessed on May 27, 2020

↑ Frankfurter Buchmesse 2020 as a "special edition" , deutschlandfunkkultur.de, published and accessed on May 28, 2020

↑ Construction, CHBeck, Klett-Cotta and Suhrkamp will take part in the Frankfurt Book Fair 2020 with a joint exhibition stand , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on July 14, 2020

↑ Barbara Kindermann has died , boersenblatt.net, published and accessed on June 22, 2020

↑ Nine Berlin authors receive Alfred Döblin grants , buchmarkt.de, January 30, 2020, accessed on July 13, 2020

↑ The Jürgen Ponto Foundation's Literature Prize goes to Deniz Ohde , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on July 13, 2020

↑ International Literature Prize awarded , deutschlandfunkkultur.de, published and accessed on June 4, 2020

↑ 12th International Literature Prize - House of World Cultures: The winners have been announced , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on June 4, 2020

[1] Corona crisis and book trade sales: product range with a sharp decline in March , boersenblatt.net, April 9, 2020, accessed on April 10, 2020

[2] Sales development in the retail book trade up to April 2020 , de.statista.com, May 7, 2020, accessed on May 15, 2020

[3] " Important Update ", dublinliteraryaward.ie, accessed on May 16, 2020

[4] City of Cologne grants financial injection - lit.cologne is saved! , boersenblatt.net, May 15, 2020, accessed on May 16, 2020

[5] Structure- securing measure and further development / reorganization of the 2020/2021 literature festival , ratsinformation.stadt-koeln.de, May 14, 2020, accessed on May 16, 2020

[6] Jürgen Schleicher , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on May 26, 2020

[7] FU Berlin publishes Hannah Arendt Complete Edition , berlin.de, published and accessed on May 22, 2020

[8] Carlsen publishes the previously unpublished fairy tale “Der Ickabog” by JKRowling , buchmarkt.de, published and accessed on June 4, 2020

[9] Bachmann Prize online with 7 authors from Germany , deutschlandfunkkultur.de, published and accessed on May 28, 2020 (brief information)

[10] "44. Days of German-Language Literature "in Klagenfurt , ots.at, published and accessed on May 28, 2020 (detailed information, with details of the participants)