International Award for First Time NZ Author

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MEDIA RELEASE 26.06.07 > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

International Award for First Time NZ Author

Wellington writer Barbara Strathdee is just back from Italy where she
picked up the prestigious ‘ Trieste Frontier Writing 2006 ’ fiction prize for her first published novel Cafe Wars.

This international award, in its ninth year, promotes literature that develops understanding between different cultures in the border areas of Austria, Bosnia, Croazia, northeast Italy and Slovenia. The prize giving ceremony was held in May at the historic Triestine Café San Marco.

The jury, headed by vice president of International PEN, Predrag Matvejevic, cited Strathdee’s work as being “ a realistic novel about the border...during the difficult years of the twentieth century Balkan Wars. Her revisiting of the uncertainties and apparent indifference of the Triestines during those dramatic days..is utterly compelling because it emerges indirectly .” The novel was also praised for its ‘psychologically interesting characters’.

“I’m delighted that the experiences described in Café Wars have found
such a strong resonance. I’ve been living and working in two countries for
years and this prize is a terrific acknowledgement of that.”

Strathdee lives in Wellington and is currently writing her second novel.

ENDS

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