John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 30 (1971) Winner
Shiva Naipaul
シヴァ・ナイポール
Shiva Naipaul
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1945-02-25 （Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago）
- Died
- 1985-08-13 （Camden, London, England） age 40
- Nationality
- Trinidad and Tobago, British
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Port of Spain, Trinidad → London, United Kingdom (Earl's Court and others)
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Journalist
- Active Years
- 1970-1985
- Influenced By
- V. S. Naipaul
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen's Royal College | — | — | — | 1950s–1960s | Trinidad and Tobago |
| St Mary's College (Trinidad and Tobago) | — | — | — | 1960s | Trinidad and Tobago |
| University College, Oxford | Chinese studies (scholarship) | — | — | 1964–1967 | United Kingdom |
Queen's Royal College
Period:
1950s–1960s
Year of Graduation:
1963
Country:
Trinidad and Tobago
Secondary school in Trinidad
St Mary's College (Trinidad and Tobago)
Period:
1960s
Year of Graduation:
1964
Country:
Trinidad and Tobago
Secondary education (pre-university)
University College, Oxford
Chinese studies (scholarship)
Period:
1964–1967
Year of Graduation:
1967
Country:
United Kingdom
Went to Britain on a scholarship to study Chinese
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize | Fireflies | — | Royal Society of Literature | 受賞 |
| — | Guggenheim Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | 受賞 |
Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize
1970
Work:
Fireflies
Organization:
Royal Society of Literature
Result:
受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Costa Book Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 3 (1973) Winner
Works
Major Works
Fireflies
1970 Novel (regional)A comic yet tragicomic debut novel set in Trinidad, notable for its vivid regional characterisation and portrait of social life.
DiasporaLocal societyTragicomic humor
The Chip-Chip Gatherers
1973 Novel (satire / comic)A satirical depiction of Trinidadian households and class, featuring an interwoven ensemble of characters.
Class and familyCaribbean society depiction
North of South
1978 Non-fiction (travel)A travelogue through East Africa offering observations on colonial and postcolonial conditions; includes controversial commentary.
Travel writingColonial/postcolonialRace and positionality (brownness)
Black & White
1980 Non-fiction (travel/reportage)Non-fiction work addressing race and social conditions in various locales; published in the U.S. as Journey to Nowhere.
RaceSocial critiqueTravel writing
A Hot Country
1983 NovelA novel from the 1980s marking a departure from his earlier comic Trinidad novels toward a darker tone.
Politics and violenceIndividual fate
Beyond the Dragon's Mouth: Stories and Pieces
1984 Collection of stories and essaysA collection of fiction and non-fiction pieces reflecting experiences in Trinidad and Britain.
Immigrant experienceCross-cultural observation
An Unfinished Journey
1986 Non-fiction (posthumous essays/memoir)Posthumously published essays and travel pieces compiling unfinished work and reflections.
ReminiscenceTravel writing
Bibliography
- Fireflies (1970)
- The Chip-Chip Gatherers (1973)
- North of South (1978)
- Black & White (1980)
- A Hot Country (1983)
- Beyond the Dragon's Mouth: Stories and Pieces (1984)
- An Unfinished Journey (1986, posthumous)
- A Man of Mystery and Other Stories (1995, selection)
Adaptations
- Footage of Shiva Naipaul was used in a documentary about V. S. Naipaul (BBC Arena)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Concise prose with vivid, detached observationTone mixing comic and tragic elements
- Recurring Motifs
- Diaspora and belonging (brownness)Colonial/postcolonial perspectiveMovement and travel
Health
-
Heart attack (fatal)1985Suffered a fatal heart attack while working; led to sudden death
-
Alcohol-related problems (reported)生涯を通じて報告ありAccounts by family and colleagues suggest drinking may have adversely affected his health
Legacy
Shiva Naipaul left a distinctive body of regional novels and travel writing. His reputation has been reassessed posthumously; his archive is held by the British Library and The Spectator established a Shiva Naipaul Memorial Prize in his name.
Museums
- British Library (Shiva Naipaul Archive) London, England
Archives
- The British Library - The Shiva Naipaul Archive
In Popular Culture
- The Spectator's Shiva Naipaul Memorial Prize (awarded until 2014)
- Footage of Shiva used in a BBC documentary about V. S. Naipaul
Quotes
-
The moment I finished his first novel, Fireflies, I felt delight in being alive at the same time as such a writer… there are many people with whom I can initiate a long train of quotation — and laughter — from that book alone.
Source: Martin Amis (review/obituary/commentary) (1973) -
Fireflies is one of the great tragicomic novels of our day.
Source: Christopher Hitchens (The Atlantic) (2008)
Trivia
- He was the younger brother of novelist V. S. Naipaul.
- The Spectator established the Shiva Naipaul Memorial Prize for travel writing (awarded until 2014).
- His literary archive is held at the British Library.