Slovenian author Ana Schnabl’s novel longlisted for the 2023 Dublin Literature Prize

Her novel The Masterpiece was published in English by the London based publishers Istros Books (translated from the Slovene by David Limon).

The Dublin Literary Award is presented annually for a novel written in English or translated into English. The Award promotes excellence in world literature and is solely sponsored by Dublin City Council, and administered by Dublin City Libraries. Nominations are submitted by libraries in major cities throughout the world. The award is entering its 28th year. The Lord Mayor of Dublin is Patron of the Award.

This year, 84 libraries from 31 different countries took part in the nomination process. They selected 70 books, of which 30 were translated from 19 different languages. When a translated book wins, which has happened nine times so far, the prize is split between the writer and the translator.

Nominating Library’s Comment

Ana Schnabl (1985) belongs to a canon of creative and passionate authors, building on the legacy of great women writers and poets of the past and correcting injustices that the system has inflicted upon them. The Masterpiece is her first novel after a collection of short stories Razvezani for which she received Best Literary Debut Prize at the annual Ljubljana Book fair in 2017.

The Masterpiece is as much of a love story as a political drama. It takes place between 1985 – 1986, curious times in Yugoslavia. A time when country already began its disintegration and a time when the state still had a tight grip on the lives of its citizens through its security services and its web of information.

“With The Masterpiece, Ana Schnabl proved her stylistic exceptionality, you don’t skip lines with her.” – Mariborska Libraries, Slovenia