Nobel literature head: US too insular to compete

Post by **BrianIsSmilingAtYou** » Wed Oct 01, 2008 4:15 am

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Bad news for American writers hoping for a Nobel Prize next week: the top member of the award jury believes the United States is too insular and ignorant to compete with Europe when it comes to great writing.

Counters the head of the U.S. National Book Foundation: "Put him in touch with me, and I'll send him a reading list."

As the Swedish Academy enters final deliberations for this year's award, permanent secretary Horace Engdahl said it's no coincidence that most winners are European.

"Of course there is powerful literature in all big cultures, but you can't get away from the fact that Europe still is the center of the literary world ... not the United States," he told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview Tuesday. [see link above for the rest]

Thoughts?

BrianIs

AtYou

Post by **Primula Baggins** » Wed Oct 01, 2008 5:21 am

Rude ones.

No, sorry. I'm just not literary in that way—I don't receive on that frequency.

I think I know beautiful writing when I see it.* But I don't know in advance, based on the source of a piece of writing, whether it's likely to be good or not.

*And know I can't do it.