Debut novel by Alena Machoninová wins Magnesia Litera

Hella, the debut novel by Russia expert Alena Machoninová, has won the main Book of the Year prize at the Magnesia Litera awards. Hella attempts to reconstruct the story of a Czech Jewish woman who was the prototype of a character in a 1937 novel by Jiří Weil set in the USSR.

The prize for best prose work of 2023 went to poet Marek Torčík for his first prose publication, Rozložíš paměť (You Dismantle Memory). Another poet, Tomáš T. Kůs, took the annual award for contribution to literary culture, in recognition of his popularisation of slam poetry.

Prizes in several other categories were also handed out in the 23rd edition of the Magnesia Litera awards in Prague on Thursday evening.