Sirpa Kähkönen
Sirpa Kähkönen is one of Finland’s most acclaimed and widely recognised contemporary authors. Her historical novels begin where source information ends. It opens the gates to experiencing the past in a sensory way; the characters live out the story as physical, sensual beings.
Kähkönen was born to a family that had been harshly treated by the history of the 1900s. The Second World War and the Civil War preceding it had wounded her family members and marked them with heavy silence and unspoken words.
She has published thirteen novels, including 36 Urns: A History of Being Wrong, which won the prestigious Finlandia Prize and has sold over 100,000 copies in Finland, with rights sold in six territories. Four of her other novels have been nominated for the Finlandia Prize, and one was nominated for the Nordic Council Literature Prize. She has also published three works of non-fiction, one of which was nominated for the Non-Fiction Finlandia Prize, and written five plays.
In 2022, Kähkönen received the Finnish Cultural Foundation's Grand Prize for significant achievements in culture.
Awards and nominations:
- Kirjallisuuden valtionpalkinto 1992 - The State Literary Prize 1992
- Savonia-palkinto 1999 - Savonia Prize 1999
- Kuopion taiteilijaseuran kirjallisuuden tunnustuspalkinto 2003 - The Kuopio Artist Society's Literary Award 2003
- Kiitos kirjasta -mitali 2008 - Thank You for the book medallion 2008
- Savon Sanomien Savonmuan Hilima -titteli 2010
- Otavan kirjasäätiön Veijo Meri -palkinto 2012 - Otava Literary Fund Veijo Meri Prize 2012
- Pro-Finlandia -mitali 2015 - Pro Finlandia Medallion 2015
- Suomi-palkinto 2016 - Suomi-Finland Prize 2016 from the Ministry of Education and Culture
- Savonia-palkinto 2021 - Savonia Prize 2021
- Suomen Kulttuurirahaston suurpalkinto - The Finnish Cultural Foundation's Grand Prize 2021
- Finlandia-palkinto 2023 - Finlandia Prize 2023
Photo credit: Laura Malmivaara
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