The novel is enjoying a resurgence and a reinvigoration, according to writer Meaghan Delahunt, one of the judges of this year’s International DUBLIN Literary Prize. I spoke to Delahunt this morning following the announcement that Ahkil Sharma had won the prestigious award. “The state of international literature is in fine health,” Delahunt told me. “People talk about the death of the novel. There’s always been talk about the death of the novel; ever since the birth of the novel, really. I think the range of experimentation, the range of form that we saw was wonderful. Particularly the novels in translation. We’re seeing a reinvigoration of English. It’s great.”
Delahunt was one of five judges for this year’s competition, tasked with selecting first a shortlist, then a winner, out of a list of 160 novels from across the globe. “We had such a great group of judges,” she said. “We all really gelled as a group, and respected each other’s interests and particular take on books. The discussions were really joyful. It was quite stressful winnowing them down to ten.” The five-member judging panel was corralled by a non-voting Chair, former United States Court of Appeals Chief Judge Eugene R. Sullivan, and had “a very intense four days” in November, then a couple of conference calls. “I’ve never judged anything in this way. It was so democratic and joyful.”
