The novel "Time Shelter" by Bulgarian author Georgi Gospodinov won the most prestigious international award given for a specific work - "Booker". The prize was awarded at a ceremony in the British capital, London.

Gospodinov became the first Bulgarian writer with this award. The English translation was made by Angela Rodel.

After the award presentation, Georgi Gospodinov thanked the organizers, the translator Angela Rodel and the Janet-45 publishing house, which published the book.

The writer, who spoke in English for most of his speech, congratulated the Bulgarians on May 24 - "Happy holiday, happy miracle of language".

"This is an in-depth work that explores a very topical question: What happens to us when our memories disappear? Georgi Gospodinov manages to admirably deal with both individual and collective destinies, and it is precisely this complex balance between our intimate and universal convinced and touched," said the chairman of the jury French writer Leila Slimani.

Gospodinov called "Time Shelter" both "a political and a human book". Gospodinov also congratulated the other nominees, saying that all the books are amazing and should be read.

The prize is worth £50,000 and is shared between the author and the translator of the winning book. So far, authors such as Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood, Kazuo Ishiguro and Julian Barnes have won the award.

"Time Shelter" is Gospodinov's third novel after "Natural Novel" and "The Physics of Sorrow". "The New Yorker" and "The Guardian" announced it as one of the best books of 2022, and "The Times" compared the Bulgarian author to George Orwell. The novel brought Gospodinov the first "Premio Strega Europeo" award received by a writer from Eastern Europe. After entering the shortlist for "Booker", "Time Shelter" topped the ranking of the most listened-to audiobooks in Bulgaria.

Along with Georgi Gospodinov,Maryse Condé also competed for the award for "The Gospel According to the New World"; Cheon Myeong-kwan for "Whale"; Gauz for "Standing Heavy", Guadalupe Nettel for "Still Born" and Eva Baltasar for "Boulder".

The Booker Prize is one of the most important events in the literary and publishing world. It has been awarded since 1969 for a novel written in English. Since 2005, the Booker International Prize has also been awarded, for which authors from all over the world can compete with novels translated into English.

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