Princeton faculty member Ricardo Piglia, considered one of the most outstanding Latin American contemporary writers, will receive the 2008 Premio Roger Caillois, a prestigious French literary prize.
The prize is awarded each year to a Latin American writer, a French writer and a French essayist by the Maison de l'Amérique Latine cultural center in Paris and the Pen Club of France. Piglia will receive the award at a ceremony in France on June 3. Notable Latin American writers who have previously received the prize include Homero Aridjis, Adolfo Bioy Casares and Mario Vargas Llosa.
In addition, the Université de Paris IV Sorbonne has organized an international symposium in Piglia's honor on May 30-31. In April, Casa de América, a museum and cultural center in Madrid, dedicated an "author's week" to Piglia, which included a series of lectures and a tango concert.
Piglia's novels have been translated to English, French, Italian, German and Portuguese. Two of his books, "Nombre Falso" and "Plata Quemada," have inspired films, and his novel "La Ciudad Ausente" was adapted as an opera.
A faculty member at Princeton since 2001, Piglia is the Walter S. Carpenter Professor of Language, Literature and Civilization of Spain. He teaches Spanish American literature, with special emphasis on the 19th and 20th centuries.
