We are delighted to announce that award-winning author Maryse Condé has been longlisted for the International Booker Prize for the first time.
Her new novel, The Gospel According to the New World, translated into English by her husband and translator Richard Philcox, came out earlier this month.
The 89-year-old author has won many awards, including the Academy Prize (“alternative Nobel”), and was recently profiled by the New York Times.
Her new novel tells the story of a baby who grows up to be, many believe, a Messianic figure. Born on Easter Sunday, Baby Pascal is strikingly beautiful, brown in complexion, with gray-green eyes like the sea. But where does he come from? Is he really the child of God? So goes the rumour, and many signs throughout his life will cause this theory to gain ground. From journey to journey and from one community to another, Pascal sets off in search of his origins, trying to understand the meaning of his mission. Will he be able to change the fate of humanity? And what will the New World Gospel reveal?
Commenting on her nomination, Condé says, “The Gospel According to the New World is a blend of fantasy and humour. One day, to paraphrase André Breton, the world will be juicy and blue like an orange where Love will triumph and give my main character, Pascal, reason for hope.”
Her husband and translator Richard Philcox, adds,
“Husband and Translator,
Translator and Traitor,
Intimate Enemies.”
World Editions Publisher Judith Uyterlinde says, “I am delighted with this well-deserved recognition for Maryse Condé’s work. She is without a doubt one of the greatest authors of our times. Her writing is modern, witty and intelligent, as well as being daring and full of life. She knows how to blow life into each and every character she creates. I deeply admire her both as an author and a human being, and am very proud to publish her work in the English-language territories in the masterful translations of Richard Philcox.”
Congratulations to all on the longlist, and fingers crossed for a shortlisting on the 18th April!
You can check out the full longlist here.