2021 in literature
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This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 2021.
Events[edit]
- January 1 – British writer and illustrator Anthony Browne is appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to literature.[1]
New books[edit]
Dates after each title indicate U.S. publication, unless otherwise indicated.
Fiction[edit]
- Anuk Arudpragasam – A Passage North (July 15, UK)[2]
- Natasha Bowen – Skin of the Sea (November 2, US)
- Rachel Cusk – Second Place (May 6, UK)[2]
- Abigail Dean – Girl A (January 21, UK)
- Anthony Doerr – Cloud Cuckoo Land (September 28, US)[3]
- Namina Forna – The Gilded Ones (February 9, US)[4]
- Jonathan Franzen – Crossroads (October 5, US)[5]
- Damon Galgut – The Promise (June 17, UK)[2]
- Lauren Groff – Matrix (September 7, US)[6]
- Jakob Guanzon – Abundance (March 2, US)
- Nathan Harris – The Sweetness of Water (June 15, US)[7]
- Kazuo Ishiguro – Klara and the Sun (March 2, UK)[8][2]
- Caroline Kepnes – You Love Me (April 6, US)
- Stephen King
- Billy Summers (August 3, US)[9]
- Later (March 2, US)
- Mary Lawson – A Town Called Solace (February 4, Canada)[2]
- John le Carré (died 2020) – Silverview (October, UK)
- Patricia Lockwood – No One Is Talking About This (February 16, US)[10][2]
- Nadifa Mohamed – The Fortune Men (May 27, UK)[2]
- Viet Thanh Nguyen – The Committed (March 2, US)[11]
- Anna North – Outlawed (January 5, US)[12]
- Nnedi Okorafor – Remote Control (January 19, US)
- Helen Oyeyemi – Peaces (March 30, UK)
- Lauren Oyler – Fake Accounts (February 2, US)
- Lindsay Pereira – Gods and Ends (March 22, India)
- Torrey Peters – Detransition, Baby (January 7, US)
- Richard Powers – Bewilderment (September 21, US)[2]
- Sally Rooney – Beautiful World, Where Are You (September 7, Ireland)[13]
- Sunjeev Sahota – China Room (May 6, UK)[2]
- Maggie Shipstead – Great Circle (May 4, US)[2]
- Michael Farris Smith – Nick (January 5, UK)
- Wole Soyinka – Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth (September 28, UK)[14]
- Francis Spufford – Light Perpetual (February 4, UK)[2]
- Colson Whitehead – Harlem Shuffle (September 14, US)[15]
Children and young people[edit]
- Ayana Gray – Beasts of Prey (September 28, US)
- Jeff Kinney – Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Big Shot
- Meghan Markle – The Bench (June, US)
- Michael Morpurgo – A Song of Gladness (April 29, UK)
- Rose Szabo – What Big Teeth (February 2, US)
Poetry[edit]
- Amanda Gorman – The Hill We Climb: Poems (March 30, US)
Drama[edit]
- Giles Terera – The Meaning of Zong[16]
Non-fiction[edit]
- Joan Didion – Let Me Tell You What I Mean (January 26, US)
- Bill Gates – How to Avoid a Climate Disaster (February 16, US)[17]
- Sasha Issenberg – The Engagement
- Patrick Radden Keefe – Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty (April 13, US)
- Elizabeth Kolbert – Under a White Sky (February 9, US)
- Jessica Nordell – The End of Bias – A Beginning: The Science and Practice of Overcoming Unconscious Bias (September 21)[18]
- Suzanne O'Sullivan – The Sleeping Beauties: And Other Stories of Mystery Illness[18]
- Jordan Peterson – Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life (March 2, Canada)[19]
- Steve Wilkins – The Pembrokeshire Murders[20]
Biography and memoirs[edit]
- Blake Bailey – Philip Roth: The Biography[21]
- Hunter Biden – Beautiful Things (April 6, US)[22]
- Richard Coles – The Madness of Grief[23]
- Walter Isaacson – The Code Breaker (March 9, US)[24]
- Sinéad O'Connor – Rememberings[25] (June 1)
- Nadia Owusu – Aftershocks: A Memoir (January 12, UK)
- Michelle Zauner – Crying in H Mart (April 20, US)[26]
Deaths[edit]
- January 7 – Neil Sheehan, 84, American journalist (The New York Times) and author "A Bright Shining Lie", Pulitzer Prize winner (1989)[27]
- January 9 – Ved Mehta, 86, Indian novelist[28]
- January 11 – Vassilis Alexakis, 77, Greek-born French writer and translator[29]
- January 22 – Sharon Kay Penman, 75, American historical novelist[30]
- January 23 – Martha Madrigal, 92, Mexican poet[31]
- January 26 – Lars Norén, Swedish playwright, novelist and poet (born 1944)[32]
- February 8 – Jean-Claude Carrière, 89, French novelist, screenwriter and actor[33]
- February 22 – Lawrence Ferlinghetti, 101, American poet (A Coney Island of the Mind) and co-founder of the City Lights Bookstore
- March 5 – Enrique González Rojo Jr., 92, Mexican writer and philosopher[34]
- March 6
- N. S. Lakshminarayan Bhat, 84, Indian poet[35]
- Valentin Kurbatov, 81, Russian literary critic and writer[36]
- March 8 – Djibril Tamsir Niane, 89, Guinean writer and historian, COVID-19[37]
- March 21
- Nawal El Saadawi, 89, Egyptian feminist and writer (Woman at Point Zero, The Fall of the Imam)[38]
- Adam Zagajewski, 75, Polish poet (Unseen Hand, Another Beauty)[39]
- March 25
- Beverly Cleary, 104, American children's author (The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Ramona, Dear Mr. Henshaw), Newbery Medal winner (1984)[40]
- Larry McMurtry, 84, American novelist (Lonesome Dove) and screenwriter (The Last Picture Show, Brokeback Mountain)[41]
- April 2 – Arthur Kopit, 83, American playwright (Indians, Wings, Nine)[42]
- April 22 – Anthony Thwaite, 90, English poet and editor[43]
- May 1 – Pieter Aspe, 68, Belgian writer[44]
- May 2 – Jesús Hilario Tundidor, 85, Spanish poet[45]
- May 23 – Eric Carle, 91, American children's author (The Very Hungry Caterpillar)[46]
- August 4 – Jean "Binta" Breeze, 65, Jamaican poet[47]
- August 18 – Jill Murphy, 72, British children's author and illustrator (The Worst Witch)[48]
- October 13 – Gary Paulsen, 82, American young adult author (Hatchet, Dogsong)[49][50]
- October 17 – Brendan Kennelly, 85, Irish poet[51]
- November 6 – Raúl Rivero, 75, Cuban poet[52]
Awards[edit]
The following list is arranged alphabetically:
- Arthur C. Clarke Award: Laura Jean McKay, The Animals in That Country[53]
- Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize: Katherena Vermette, The Strangers[54]
- BBC National Short Story Award: Lucy Caldwell, "All the People Were Mean and Bad"[55]
- Booker Prize: Damon Galgut, The Promise[56]
- Carl Zuckmayer Medal: Nora Gomringer[57]
- Danuta Gleed Literary Award: Jack Wang, We Two Alone[58]
- Dylan Thomas Prize: Raven Leilani, Luster[59]
- Folio Prize: Carmen Maria Machado, In the Dream House
- Giller Prize: Omar El Akkad, What Strange Paradise[60]
- Governor General's Award for English-language fiction: Norma Dunning, Tainna[61]
- Governor General's Award for French-language fiction: Fanny Britt, Faire les sucres[62]
- Governor General's Awards, other categories: See 2021 Governor General's Awards.
- Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française: François-Henri Désérable, Mon maître et mon vainqueur[63]
- Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction: Tomson Highway, Permanent Astonishment[54]
- Holberg Prize: Martha Nussbaum[64]
- International Booker Prize: David Diop, At Night All Blood Is Black translated by Anna Moschovakis[65]
- Jerusalem Prize: Julian Barnes[66]
- Latner Writers' Trust Poetry Prize: Weyman Chan[54]
- Matt Cohen Award: Frances Itani[54]
- National Book Award:[67]
- Fiction: Jason Mott, Hell of a Book
- Nonfiction: Tiya Miles, All That She Carried
- Poetry: Martín Espada, Floaters
- Translated Literature: Elisa Shua Dusapin, Winter in Sokcho translated by Aneesa Abbas Higgins
- Young People's Literature: Malinda Lo, Last Night at the Telegraph Club
- Nobel Prize in Literature: Abdulrazak Gurnah[68]
- Orwell Prize:[69]
- Political fiction: Ali Smith, Summer
- Political writing: Joshua Yaffa, Between Two Fires: Truth, ambition and compromise in Putin’s Russia
- Prix Femina: Clara Dupont-Monod, S'adapter[70]
- Prix Goncourt: Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, La plus secrète mémoire des hommes[71]
- Prix Médicis: Christine Angot, Le Voyage dans l'Est[72]
- Prix Renaudot: Amélie Nothomb, Premier sang[73]
- Pulitzer Prize for Fiction: Louise Erdrich, The Night Watchman
- Walter Scott Prize: Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and the Light
- Women's Prize for Fiction: Susanna Clarke, Piranesi[74]
- Writers' Trust Engel/Findley Award: Cherie Dimaline[54]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
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- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "The 2021 Booker Prize longlist". The Booker Prize. 2021-07-27. Archived from the original on 2021-08-31. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
- ^ "Cloud Cuckoo Land". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ "The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna: 9781984848697 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved 2021-11-06.
- ^ Rankin, Seija (February 10, 2021). "See the cover of Crossroads, the first installment of Jonathan Franzen's new trilogy". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
- ^ "Matrix by Lauren Groff: 9781594634499". Penguin Random House. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
- ^ "The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris". Kirkus Reviews. May 19, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
- ^ Allfree, Claire (27 February 2021). "'Can you be a writer and a parent?': Kazuo Ishiguro and his daughter Naomi on the future of fiction". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
- ^ Lasdun, James (August 3, 2021). "Stephen King Pays His Dues in a 'One Last Job' Novel". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
- ^ Goddu, Charlotte (February 16, 2021). "In No One Is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood Captures a Joyful, Sinister Life Online—But Also the World Beyond". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
- ^ Khatib, Joumana (February 24, 2021). "16 New Books to Watch For in March". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
- ^ Singer, Jenny (January 22, 2021). "7 of the Best New Books to Read in January". Glamour. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
- ^ Campbell, Lucy (2021-09-06). "'Novel of the moment': Sally Rooney's third book hits the shelves". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
- ^ Okri, Ben (2021-09-27). "Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth by Wole Soyinka review – a vast danse macabre". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
- ^ "Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead". Kirkus Reviews. June 16, 2021. Archived from the original on August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
- ^ Mirren Wilson (24 March 2021). "Review:The Meaning of Zong, Bristol Old Vic". A Younger Theatre. Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
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- ^ a b "Royal Society Science Book Prize, sponsored by Insight Investment". royalsociety.org. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
- ^ Moore, Suzanne (February 27, 2021). "Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life, review: Jordan Peterson is back with a self-help book that is not here to hug you better". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on March 3, 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
- ^ "Pembrokeshire Murders, The". Gwales. Archived from the original on 12 January 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
- ^ "Nonfiction Book Review: Philip Roth: The Biography by Blake Bailey". Publishers Weekly. February 8, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
- ^ "Beautiful Things: A Memoir by Hunter Biden". Kirkus Reviews. April 6, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
- ^ Michael Coren (29 March 2021). "Richard Coles and the madness of grief". The Critic. Archived from the original on 29 March 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ "The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson". Kirkus Reviews. January 6, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
- ^ "Nothing compares: Sinead O'Connor memoir coming out in June". USA Today. Archived from the original on 12 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
- ^ Rao, Sonia (April 20, 2021). "Japanese Breakfast's Michelle Zauner is fighting for joy through grief". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ^ "Obituary: Neil Sheehan, fearless war correspondent who had huge exclusive with the Pentagon Papers". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ Margalit Fox (10 January 2021). "Ved Mehta, Celebrated Writer for The New Yorker, Dies at 86". New York Times. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
- ^ "Littérature : disparition de Vassilis Alexakis, le plus français des écrivains grecs". Le Courrier des Balkans (in French). Archived from the original on 13 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
- ^ Clay Risen (January 29, 2021). "Sharon Kay Penman, whose novels plumbed Britain's past, dies at 75". New York Times. Archived from the original on February 6, 2021. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- ^ Falleció en México la poetisa Martha Madrigal Archived 2021-01-29 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
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- ^ "Jean-Claude Carrière, screenwriter of Cyrano de Bergerac and Belle de Jour, dies aged 89". The Guardian. London. Agence France-Presse. 9 February 2021. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
- ^ Fallece el pensador, poeta y activista Enrique González Rojo Arthur Archived 2021-03-10 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
- ^ "Noted Kannada poet and Sahitya Akademi awardee NS Lakshminarayana Bhatta passes away at 84". Archived from the original on 2021-03-10. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
- ^ В Пскове скончался член Союза писателей России Валентин Курбатов Archived 2021-03-10 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian)
- ^ Addio allo storico Djibril Tamsir Niane Archived 2021-03-30 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian)
- ^ "Pioneering Egyptian Feminist Nawal El Saadawi Dies Aged 89". 21 March 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-03-23. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
- ^ Zmarł wybitny poeta i eseista Adam Zagajewski Archived 2021-03-30 at the Wayback Machine (in Polish)
- ^ "Beverly Cleary, beloved and prolific author of children's books, dies at 104". 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-03-27. Retrieved 2021-03-27.
- ^ Garner, Dwight (26 March 2021). "Larry McMurtry, Novelist of the American West, Dies at 84". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ "Arthur Kopit Dies: Pulitizer-Nominated 'Indians', 'Nine' Playwright Was 83". 3 April 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-05-05. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
- ^ "Anthony Thwaite obituary". Archived from the original on 2021-05-03. Retrieved 2021-09-17.(subscription required)
- ^ Succesauteur Pieter Aspe overleden Archived 2021-05-02 at the Wayback Machine (in Dutch)
- ^ Fallece el poeta zamorano Jesús Hilario Tundidor a los 85 años Archived 2021-05-03 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
- ^ Carmel, Julia (May 26, 2021). "Eric Carle, Author of 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar,' Dies at 91". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ "Jamaican dub poet Jean 'Binta' Breeze dies aged 65". the Guardian. 2021-08-05. Archived from the original on 2021-08-06. Retrieved 2021-08-06.
- ^ Strzyżyńska, Weronika (20 August 2021). "Jill Murphy, children's author and illustrator, dies aged 72". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
- ^ Balaban, Samantha (October 14, 2021). "Beloved children's author and wilderness enthusiast Gary Paulsen has died at 82". NPR. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ Risen, Clay (October 14, 2021). "Gary Paulsen, Author of Young-Adult Adventures, Dies at 82". The New York Times. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "President leads tributes to poet Brendan Kennelly".
- ^ https://www.marketresearchtelecast.com/raul-rivero-cuban-poet-and-journalist-dissident-of-castroism-dies-in-miami/196367/amp/
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- ^ Flood, Alison (3 November 2021). "Damon Galgut wins Booker prize with 'spectacular' novel The Promise". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ "Zuckmayer-Medaille für Nora Gomringer". Süddeutsche Zeitung. Munich. dpa. 5 October 2020. Archived from the original on 11 October 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
- ^ Vicky Qiao, "Jack Wang wins $10K Danuta Gleed Literary Award for best first short story collection for We Two Alone". CBC Books, May 28, 2021.
- ^ "Dylan Thomas Prize: New Yorker Raven Leilani wins accolade". BBC News. 13 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
- ^ Adina Bresge, "Omar El Akkad wins $100K Giller Prize for 'What Strange Paradise'". CTV News, November 8, 2021.
- ^ "Inuk author Norma Dunning wins $25K Governor General's fiction prize". Coast Reporter, November 17, 2021.
- ^ Laila Maalouf, "Fanny Britt remporte le Prix du Gouverneur général". La Presse, November 17, 2021.
- ^ "François-Henri Désérable reçoit le Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française". Le Monde (in French). 28 October 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
- ^ "Martha C. Nussbaum | Holbergprisen". holbergprisen.no (in Norwegian Bokmål). Archived from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
- ^ "International Booker Prize: David Diop becomes first French winner". BBC News. 2021-06-02. Archived from the original on 2021-06-02. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
- ^ Porter Anderson (3 May 2021). "Israel's Jerusalem Prize Goes to England's Julian Barnes". Publishing Perspectives. Archived from the original on 25 May 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
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- ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 2021". NobelPrize.org. 2021-10-07. Archived from the original on 2021-10-07. Retrieved 2021-10-07.
- ^ "Smith, Yaffa win 2021 Orwell Prizes". Books+Publishing. 2021-06-28. Archived from the original on 2021-06-28. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
- ^ Clermont, Thierry (25 October 2021). "Clara Dupont-Monod remporte le prix Femina 2021". Le Figaro (in French). Retrieved 6 November 2021.
- ^ Henley, Jon (3 November 2021). "Senegal's Mohamed Mbougar Sarr wins top French literary prize". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
- ^ "Prix Médicis : Christine Angot lauréate pour son roman Le Voyage dans l'Est". Le Monde (in French). 26 October 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
- ^ "Le prix Renaudot récompense Amélie Nothomb pour « Premier sang »". ouest-france.fr. 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- ^ Flood, Alison (2021-09-08). "Women's prize for fiction goes to Susanna Clarke's 'mind-bending' Piranesi". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 2021-09-08. Retrieved 2021-09-08.