D.he South African author Damon Galgut has won the prestigious British Booker Prize. He convinced the jury with his novel “The Promise”, which documents the decline of a white family in South Africa over several decades, from apartheid to democracy. It was the third nomination for the 57-year-old.
The book combines “an extraordinary story, rich topics and the history of the past 40 years of South Africa in an incredibly well-written package”, praised the chairwoman of the jury, Maya Jasanoff, at the award ceremony in London on Wednesday evening.
The title “The Promise” refers to a promise made to a black servant of the family that she would keep the house and the land on which she lives. “I think a lot of us had great expectations for the future,” Galgut told the BBC. The small piece of land represents just one of many disappointed promises.
The Booker Prize is awarded annually to the author of an English-language novel published in Great Britain or Ireland. It is endowed with 50,000 pounds (around 59,000 euros).
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