The National Book Council has announced the winners of the National Book Prize 2015: Books 2014. The official prize giving ceremony took place on Friday the 11th of December 2015 at Auberge de Castille.
National Book Prize participants were present alongside distinguished guests for official speeches by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and the Executive Chairman of the National Book Council, Mark Camilleri.
Certificates were handed out to all shortlisted authors and their publishers and winners in every category received a trophy, certificate and a €1000 prize.
The winner of the Literary Work: The Novel Category , Immanuel Mifsud, received a €5000 grant courtesy of the Malta Arts Council’s Cultural Export Fund to fund the translation of the winning text Jutta Heim into a foreign language.
The adjudication board for this year’s edition of the National Book Prize was composed of:
Prof. Clare Vassallo, Dr Marco Galea and Dr.Norbert Bugeja for Literary Categories: Novel, Short Story, Poetry, Drama and Translation.
Prof. Victor Mallia Milanes, Mr Alex Farrugia and Mr Mario Ellul for Research Categories: General and Historiographic.
Prof. Charles Mifsud, Mr Andre' Vella Laurenti and Mr David Muscat Azzopardi for Children and Adolescent Literature Categories of the Terramaxka Prize.
Ms. Cheryl Falzon and Ms. Joanne Sciberras also helped in the classification process.
Following are the winners in their respective categories:
Literary Work: The Novel Category
Jutta Heim by Immanuel Mifsud (Klabb Kotba Maltin)
Literary Work: Short Stories Category
Kulħadd ħalla isem warajh by Clare Azzopardi (Merlin Publishers)
Literary Work: Poetry Category
taħt il-kpiepel t’għajnejja by Maria Grech Ganado (Klabb Kotba Maltin)
General Research Category
The Maltese Nineteenth-Century Notary and his Archives by Michael Refalo (Book Distributors Limited)
Historiographic Research Category
The Social and Religious History of a Maltese Parish: St. Mary’s Qrendi in the Eighteenth Century by Frans Ciappara (Malta University Press)
Translation Category
Salammbȏ by Paul Zahra (Self Published)
Prize for the Best Book Production
The Maltese Bestiary by Merlin Publishers
Lifetime Achievement Award for Contribution to Maltese Literature Maria Grech Ganado