During the year, the non-fiction book has been discussed at both the Book Industry Day and the literature festival Sakligt. The discussion has since spread to the cultural pages of newspapers. Dagens Nyheter's Jan Eklund recently praised non-fiction books, but took the opportunity to dismiss the August Prize nominations in the non-fiction category. Shortly after, Björn Werner in Svenska Dagbladet dismissed all non-fiction books published in Sweden as "almost worthless".
At SvD, Anders Q Björkman will soon take up a position as non-fiction editor, after many years as deputy cultural editor. He also misses certain titles in the August Prize nominations.
It has become biased towards popular history. I would have liked to see more elements of journalistic craftsmanship, says Anders Q Björkman.
For the third year in a row, science journalist and author Joanna Rose is chairman of the jury group that handles the nominations in the non-fiction category. The task is to nominate the six best books from the past year's publications.
This strong year, we could have nominated 30 books. Of course, I understand that some people miss their favorites. Honestly, I do too.
Complex question
Björn Werner's criticism of non-fiction publishing is in turn criticized by Joanna Rose.
I don't agree at all. Of course, there are some bad ones, but you forget them because there's so much else that's good.
Anders Q Björkman also believes that Swedish non-fiction publishing holds a high standard.
Personally, I'm perhaps more interested in non-fiction books that come out from smaller publishers, such as Uwe Wittstock's "Marseille 1940". I don't know if it sells well, but if it doesn't, it's not because it's bad.
What is the reason for the non-fiction crisis?
Two partial explanations are that we Swedes tend to buy English original editions and that non-fiction books don't quite work in audiobook format. But the problem has more aspects.
Literary scholar Alexandra Borg recently called for increased engagement from the country's cultural journalists to increase interest in non-fiction books. Joanna Rose agrees:
I wish more knowledgeable and interested reviewers would get tips on everything important that's being published. To the general public, my advice is: read more books!, she says.
Anders Q Björkman has an observation that gives some hope for non-fiction enthusiasts:
Digital data shows that SvD's readers are more interested in non-fiction than fiction. This speaks for the potential of non-fiction books, he says.
The six nominees in the category Best Swedish Non-Fiction Book:
Bonnie Clementsson: "Captured Fates. Thieves and Swindlers in 19th-Century Sweden", Kaj Fölster, Bosse Lindquist, Janken Myrdal: "The Secret Letters. The Political Family and Everyday Conversations", Kim Khavar Fahlstedt: "Oland. Sweden's Forgotten Hollywood Star", Christian Rück: "A Life Worth Living. Why Suicide Became Humanity's Companion", Richard Tellström: "Every Bite is a Thought. Swedish Food Culture over 800 Years" and Tora Wall: "The Forest. In Folklore, Legends, and Sagas".
Nominated for Best Swedish Fiction Book:
Linus Gårdfeldt: "Brother, Crab, and Leather", Agri Ismaïl: "Hyper", Hanna Rajs: "Same, Mom", Karolina Ramqvist: "The First Book", Tony Samuelsson: "The King of Nostratien" and Mirja Unge: "Dog Nights".
Nominations for Best Swedish Children's and Young Adult Book:
Klara Bartilsson: "The Forest Child", Jenny Bergman & Lotta Geffenblad: "A Jungle Tale", Linda Bondestam: "Chop Chop. A Brave Earthling's Story", Maja Hjertzell & Joanna Hellgren: "Brother's Friend Robban", Lova Lakso: "Without Passing" and Sara Lundberg: "No One but Me".
The three August Prizes, along with the Little August Prize, will be awarded on Monday evening, November 25, at a gala at the Dramaten in Stockholm. On the same evening, Dillbergs bookstore in Kalmar will also receive the Swedish Publishers' Association's Honorary Prize.
