Turkish author wins European Bank's literature prize

By Gokhan Ergocun

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish novelist Burhan Sonmez's 'Istanbul Istanbul' has won an international literature prize awarded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the bank announced late Tuesday.

The €20,000 (around $25,000) prize -- split between the author and translator Umit Hussein -- was awarded at a ceremony at the bank’s headquarters in London on April 10, the bank said in a press release.

All the World’s a Stage by Boris Akunin, translated from Russian by Andrew Bromfield, and Belladonna by Daša Drndic, translated from Croatian by Celia Hawkesworth, also received €2,000 prize as the two runner-up titles.

The prize, created by the EBRD in partnership with the British Council and the London Book Fair, provides a unique opportunity to reflect the culture and creativity of almost 40 economies where the bank invests, from Morocco to Mongolia, Estonia to Egypt, it said.

The EBRD, was set up in 1991, is a multilateral bank with almost 70 shareholders which promotes the development of the private sector and entrepreneurial initiatives in 37 economies across three continents, according to the bank's statement.