Magnesia Litera
1 appearances
-
Edition 4 (2005) Winner
Jan Novák
ヤン・ノヴァーク
Jan Novák
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1953-04-04 （Kolín）
- Nationality
- Czech Republic, United States
- Languages
- Czech, English
- Residence History
- Czechoslovakia (Kolín) → Austria (refugee camp) → Cicero, Illinois → Czech Republic (since 2008)
Career
- Occupations
- writer, screenwriter, playwright, graphic novel librettist
- Active Years
- 1980-2024
- Influenced By
- Václav Havel, Miloš Forman, Josef Škvorecký
- Nominations
- Czech Lion Award nomination (documentary), Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film (Slovakia)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shimer College | — | — | — | 高校卒業後 | United States |
| University of Chicago | — | — | 学士号および修士号 | — | United States |
Shimer College
Period:
高校卒業後
Country:
United States
Small Great Books college, attended then transferred
University of Chicago
Degree:
学士号および修士号
Country:
United States
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Carl Sandburg Award | The Willys Dream Kit | — | — | winner |
| 1985 | Friends of Literature Award | The Willys Dream Kit | — | — | winner |
| 1995 | Carl Sandburg Literary Award (non-fiction) | Commies, Crooks, Gypsies, Spooks and Poets | — | — | winner |
| 2005 | Magnesia Litera | Zatím dobrý | 年間最優秀書 | — | winner |
| 2007 | Josef Škvorecký Prize | Děda (Grandpa) | — | — | winner |
| 2023 | Egon Ervin Kisch Award | Life at Play | — | — | winner |
Carl Sandburg Award
1985
Work:
The Willys Dream Kit
Result:
winner
Friends of Literature Award
1985
Work:
The Willys Dream Kit
Result:
winner
Carl Sandburg Literary Award (non-fiction)
1995
Work:
Commies, Crooks, Gypsies, Spooks and Poets
Result:
winner
Magnesia Litera
2005
Work:
Zatím dobrý
Category:
年間最優秀書
Result:
winner
Josef Škvorecký Prize
2007
Work:
Děda (Grandpa)
Result:
winner
Egon Ervin Kisch Award
2023
Work:
Life at Play
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Willys Dream Kit
1985 novelDraws on family experience and depicts his father's life story from his youth during the Nazi occupation to death in the USA.
family historyNazi occupationimmigrant life
Translations
- Czech edition
Translations by Author
- Translations of Václav Havel's plays
Translations of Works
- Zátopek (10 languages)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- ironic sensibilityCzenglish (mixing of Czech and English)
- Recurring Motifs
- lives of Czech immigrantsfamily storiesanti-communism
Legacy
Czech-American writer, screenwriter, and playwright acclaimed in both the US and Czech Republic. Collaborated closely with Václav Havel and Miloš Forman. Returned to Czech Republic in 2008; Collected Works published by Argo since 2022.
Trivia
- Family fled Czechoslovakia in 1969 after father's embezzlement was discovered.
- Served three years as an armored car guard in Chicago, inspiration for autobiographical work.