TIRANA, Nov 15 /ATA/ – Tirana 2025 Book Fair announced its annual literary awards on Saturday, honouring writers, translators and publishers across five categories.
The jury was chaired by Elsa Skënderi Rakipllari and included Beti Njuma, Maniela Sota, Teuta Dhima and Zija Vukaj.
Ali Xhiku won the award for Best Scholarly Book for “Flipping Through Albania History Pages” (Alb. Faqeve të historiografisë shqiptare), published by Onufri. The jury praised the book for its contribution to the theoretical and methodological study of key questions in Albanian literary history.
Prominent scholar and writer Artan Fuga was named Author of the Year for his novel “Eve’s Second Punishment” (Alb. “Ndëshkimi i dytë i Evës by publishing house Papirus,”) described by the jury as an impressive narrative structure intertwining origin myths, family and urban drama, and the technological anxieties of contemporary life.
Translator Virgjil Muçi received the Best Translation Award for his Albanian rendering of Percival Everett’s James, winner of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize, published by Dituria. The jury noted his command of Albanian and his ability to recreate the novel’s dual idiomatic registers with precision and literary flair.
The award for Best Children’s Book went to writer Valbona Banka for “Aria In My Hand” (Aria, në dorën time) by Dita Books, cited for its humorous storytelling and use of cultural markers that foster national identity and emotional development among young readers.
Urim Nerguti won the prize for Best Translation from French for his Albanian edition of Kamel Daoud’s Hyrija, winner of the 2024 Goncourt Prize, published by Buzuku. The jury commended his nuanced language choices and faithful rendering of the novel’s pauses, hesitations and multiple narrative voices.
The fair continues on Sunday.
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