For the last couple of weeks, I've been telling co-workers that Ngugi wa Thiong'o is going to win this year's Nobel Prize for literature. "Just watch," I told them. "He'll win. Then you'll have to read his books just to be considered 'literary.'" Of course, this was met with looks of confusion and the inevitable, "Who?" The fact that I probably mispronounced his name certainly didn't help.
The moral? Don't ever trust my picks for any literary award. I'm not bitter or anything. I'm not saying she doesn't deserve it. I'm just--well, shocked. Would this qualify as some sort of upset? I never would have picked Doris Lessing in any year. She barely crosses my mind. But now--well, obviously, I'm going to remedy that.
Yup, I was a bit shocked, too. I think everyone was/is.
Posted by: theorist | October 12, 2007 at 09:41 AM
You've read THE WIZARD OF THE CROW? I bought it last month, and I can't wait to get around to reading it (I'm still trying to clean up my "currently reading" list).
Good luck on that name pronunciation. When I was looking for his books a few months ago, I asked the bookstore rep. if they carried his books. She gave me a blank-eyed stare before she said, "Who?"
"Ngugi...Never mind."
Eh, maybe you'll have better luck with your predictions next year. ;)
Posted by: J.S. Peyton | October 15, 2007 at 01:32 PM