The jury, which announced the winner of the best German language novel on Monday, said it was inspired by the “innovative power” of writing by de l’Horizon, who identifies as neither male nor female.
“With enormous creative energy, the non-binary narrative character in Kim de l’Horizon’s novel Blutbuch searches for their own language,” said the book prize jury on reaching its verdict. “What narratives are there for a body that defies conventional notions of gender?”
De l’Horizon was born near Bern but is coy about exactly when, stating a birth date of 2666. The author beat five other short-listed finalists to take the €25,000 (CHF24,400) top prize.
Blutbuch has already been awarded the Literature Prize by the Jürgen Ponto Foundation.
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