Johan Jönsson broke through with the poetry book After Work Schedule 2008, which was also nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. The double poem Mariginalia / Xterminalia, as is often the case with Jönsson, is driven by class hatred and self-contempt which takes on purely physical expression.
Steve Sem-Sandberg is a literary critic and author. IW does a deep dive into the human psyche. The novel is based on the true story of the soldier Woyzeck who, by jealousy, kills the woman he loves. Sandberg was nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize 2009 for the novel The Poor, which was translated into 25 languages.
Among this year's nominees is also the poem collection Yahya Hassan 2 by the Danish poet Yahya Hassan and Who killed the bamboo? by Monika Fagerholm.
A total of 13 works have been nominated, of which 8 novels, 3 poems and a short story collection.
The Nordic Council Literature Prize is awarded to a fictional work written in one of the Nordic languages. The prize was established in 1962 and rewards the winner with DKK 350,000. The winner is revealed during an awards ceremony in Reykjavik this fall.