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.
Macron will attend Swiss summit on Ukraine, says Zelensky
This content was published on
French President Emmanuel Macron will attend the peace conference on Ukraine at the Swiss Bürgenstock resort next month, according to Volodymyr Zelensky.
Top politician tells ‘corrupt’ Eurovision to stay away from Bern
This content was published on
A social media post by the president of Bern’s cantonal government critical of the Eurovision Song Contest has created waves and will be discussed in the cantonal parliament.
Swiss centre records over 200 victims of human trafficking
This content was published on
Last year 317 people took part in a protection programme run by the Specialist Unit for Trafficking in Women and Women’s Migration (FIZ) in German-speaking Switzerland.
This content was published on
The Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and partners are opening a field hospital in southern Gaza on Tuesday.
Lack of smartphone sustainability in Switzerland hits environment
This content was published on
Almost half of all Swiss citizens hang on to their old smartphones, tablets and laptops, according to the Federal Statistical Office.
Police clear out pro-Palestinian students protesting in Geneva
This content was published on
The police intervened early on Tuesday to dislodge pro-Palestinian students who had been occupying the University of Geneva for almost a week.
New gel developed in Zurich renders alcohol harmless
This content was published on
A newly developed gel composed of whey proteins breaks down alcohol in the body and could reduce its harmful and intoxicating effects in humans.
Pro-Palestine protests extend to Basel and Fribourg universities
This content was published on
Demonstrators called for an academic boycott of all Israeli institutions and disassociation with Chaim Weizmann, the first Israeli president.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Irish author maps out literary Switzerland
This content was published on
Many writers have found shelter, inspiration and adventure in Switzerland. A new book distils two centuries of literature with Swiss connections.
This content was published on
At the Bodmer Foundation’s museum in Cologny near Geneva, visitors can absorb impressions from 2,000 pages of his writings, photos and other personal effects. A 500-page catalogue accompanies the exhibition. The padded jacket the prolific writer kept from his gulag years is there too, a reminder of his journey to Stalin’s version of hell and…
This content was published on
“That was very important for me. You get feedback, you can work on the poems. I also got a lot of specialist knowledge about poetry structure, metre and so on. All of this I learned through the internet and not in school.” Schwaller looks more like a dancer than a poet. Just as a dancer…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.