Anti-Booker prize

Russian literary award

The Anti-Booker prize (Russian: Антибукер) was a Russian literary award that existed between 1995 and 2001. Established by newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta using money of Boris Berezovsky. Its name refers to British-sponsored Russian Booker and differences are:

  • prize was to be one dollar more than the Russian Booker
  • not limited to novels, but has 5 nominations (also poetry, stageplays, literary critics and memoirs)
  • current year's works were awarded.

Judging panel

Judges included well-known journalists, editors, literary critics and artists:

  • Andrei Vasilevsky, editor-in-chief of Novy Mir;
  • Natalya Ivanova, assistant of editor-in-chief of Znamya;
  • Andrei Volos, writer awarded at Anti-booker 98;
  • Victor Toporov, literary critics and translator;
  • Yevgeniy Rein, poet;
  • Natalya Trauberg, translator;
  • Alexander Guelman, author of many Soviet stageplays;
  • Irina Kupchenko, People's Artist of the USSR;
  • Oleg Tabakov, People's Artist of the USSR

et al.

Winners

  • 1995 – Aleksei Varlamov, Nativity (Рождение) (novel)
  • 1996 – Dmitri Bakin (pseudónim), Country of origin (Страна происхождения) (novel)
    • – Sergei Gandlevski, Holiday (Праздник) (poetry)
    • – Ivan Saveliev, Voyage at the edge (Путешествие на краю) (piece)
  • 1997 – Dmitri Galkovsky, Infinite Dead-end (Бесконечный тупик) (novel) – Dmitri Galkovski declined the prize
    • – Timur Kibirov, Paráfrasis (Парафразис) (poetry)
    • – Oleg Bogayev, Russian popular post (Русская народная почта) (stageplay)
    • – Aleksandr Goldstein, Farewell to Narciss (Прощание с нарциссом) (literary critics)
  • 1998 – Andrei Volos, Hurramabad (Хуррамабад) (novel)
    • – Maksim Amelin, cycle of poetry Follow Sumarokov with olive of victory (За Сумароковым с победною оливой) (poetry)
    • – Maksim Kurochkin, Ironwill (Стальова воля) (stageplay)
    • – Oleg Davydov, Demon of Solzhenitsyn (Демон Солженицына) (literary critics)
    • – Emma Gerstein, Moscow Memoirs (Мемуары)
    • – Marina Tarkovski, Shards of mirror (Осколки зеркала) (Memoirs)
  • 1999 – no prose was awarded
    • – no poetry was awarded; prize was kept and later awarded Boris Ryzhy, From Sverdlovsk with love
    • – Evgeni Grishkovets, Notes of Russian voyager and Winter (Записки русского путешественника, Зима) (stageplays)
    • – Pavel Basinski, (literary critics)
    • – Aleksandr Ivanchenko, Bathing of red horse (poem without heroes), (Купание Красного коня (поэма без героев))
  • 2000 – Boris Akunin Coronation, or the Last of the Romanovs (Коронация, или Последний из РОМАНОВ) (novel)
    • – Bajyt Kenzheiev, Girl from the morning dream (Снящаяся под утро) (poetry)
    • – Vasili Sigarev, Plasticine (Пластилин) (stageplay)
    • – Evgeni Yermolin, (literary critics)
    • – Aleksei Filippov , Diary of desperation and hope (Дневник отчаяния и надежды)

External links

  • History of the prize (in Russian)
  • Article in Britannica