Author Emma Monceau (Lida, 1959) yesterday won the 7th Omnium Prize for Best Novel of the Year for her novel The Master and the Beast (Anagrama). The award jury recognized a novel in which Monceau narrates the emergence of a young teacher into the world in a village in the Pyrenees at the beginning of the sixties, and appreciated “the construction of a strong and unique character that imbues the novel and complements it with an aesthetic spirit.” Personal vision of post-war Catalonia. Without being autobiographical, the author proposes a volume that collects all her “sorrows from the past,” the more distant death of her father as well as the more recent death of her mother.
After receiving the award from the president of Òmnium, Xavier Antich, Monceau celebrated the victory of a novel that does not follow the “majority trend”. “I don't follow fashion, it's a natural instinct not to.” He also explained that he likes to write “honest” novels that make readers “overwhelm.” The writer gave priority to the development of society and language. In this sense, he stressed that “direct attacks” against Catalans, such as those he claimed had occurred in the Valencian region and the Balearic Islands, could not be allowed. “It is unacceptable and we must report it,” he added. The 7th Omnium Prize for Best Novel will award €20,000 directly to the winner and €5,000 for promotion. Maria Clement with the song “A casa Teníem un hymne” and Elisabeth Riera with the song “Once It Was Summer All Night Long” were finalists for the award.
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