Tijan Sila receives the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize

Tijan Sila has been awarded the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize 2024, which will be presented at the 48th Days of German-Language Literature in Klagenfurt. The jury, chaired by Klaus Kastberger, honored Tijan Sila for his autobiographical text “The Day My Mother Went Crazy”, which deals with the devastating effects of war experiences on the personal lives of survivors of the Bosnian war. Juror Philipp Tingler, who invited Sila to the Bachmann competition, emphasized Sila’s “unsentimental, laconic tone” and his “unique style, which combines pointedness, tragicomedy and melancholy” in his short laudatory speech. The award-winning text is part of Tijan Sila’s current novel project, which is expected to be published by Hanser Berlin in 2026 and thematically ties in with his novel “Radio Sarajevo”, published in 2023. The Ingeborg Bachmann Prize, which is sponsored by the provincial capital of Klagenfurt am Wörthersee, is endowed with 25,000 euros.