The prize, also known as the European Literary Award, is given by Austria's Federal Chancellery for Arts, Culture and Media to outstanding European authors whose works have been translated into German.
A citation by the jury says that, in her books, Bator “has transformed the traumatic experience of the 20th century into complex stories, most of which focus on female protagonists.”
Bator’s literary output comprises both fiction and non-fiction.
Her novel Ciemno, prawie noc (Dark, Almost Night) in 2013 won the Nike Award, Poland’s top literary distinction.
Her books Piaskowa Góra (Sandy Mountain) and Japoński wachlarz (The Japanese Fan) also received high acclaim.
Bator’s most recent novel Gorzko, gorzko (Bitternis), in a translation into German by Lisa Palmes, has been nominated for the Leipzig Book Fair Prize, which will be announced on Thursday.
The Austrian State Prize for European Literature was launched in 1965. Its past recipients include Polish authors Zbigniew Herbert, Sławomir Mrożek, Tadeusz Różewicz, Stanisław Lem, Andrzej Szczypiorski and Andrzej Stasiuk, in addition to renowned international authors such as Wystan Hugh Auden, Eugène Ionesco, Milan Kundera and Umberto Eco.
(mk/gs)