Publishers submit 173 titles

Publishers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland have submitted more titles than ever before for the German Book Prize. By the time the registration deadline rolled around at the end of March, 173 German-language novels had been submitted. That’s nearly 40 titles more than last year. Submissions were received from 106 publishers, including 72 from Germany, 23 from Austria and 11 from Switzerland. Last year a total of 84 publishers participated in the call for submissions.

Of the novels submitted, 77 titles are from publishers’ current spring programmes. Around as many titles (80) will be published this summer or fall. Sixteen titles have been available since fall 2010. Each publisher can nominate a maximum of two titles for the German Book Prize and recommend up to five additional titles. This list of additional recommendations features 96 novels this year. The jurors can request to see additional titles from this list during the selection process.

In the coming weeks, the seven-member jury will begin the selection process for the German Book Prize 2011. Its members include: Maike Albath (Deutschlandfunk and DeutschlandRadio Kultur), Gregor Dotzauer (Der Tagesspiegel), Ulrike Draesner (author), Clemens-Peter Haase (Goethe Institute), Ina Hartwig (independent critic), Christine Westermann (Westdeutscher Rundfunk) and Uwe Wittstock (Focus).

The 20-title longlist will be announced on 17 August 2011. From this list, jurors will select six titles for the shortlist, which will be published on 14 September 2011. On 10 October, the evening of the award ceremony, the six authors will be informed of the winner of the German Book Prize

The German Book Prize is awarded by the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels Stiftung – the Foundation of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association – and features prize winnings of 37,500 euros. Partners of the German Book Prize include Paschen & Companie, the 1822 Foundation of the Frankfurter Sparkasse, the Frankfurt Book Fair and the city of Frankfurt am Main. The television station Deutsche Welle serves as a media partner for the German Book Prize both at home and abroad.

Information on the German Book Prize 2011 can be found at www.deutscher-buchpreis.de.

Frankfurt am Main, 5 April 2011