Bulgarian Fiction

As mentioned on the Absinthe blog, the Elizabeth Kostova Foundation and VAGABOND (an English-language magazine from Bulgaria) are teaming up to publish works from twelve “young and sometimes not-so-young Bulgarian writers that the EKF considers original, refreshing and valuable.”

The first one available is Georgi Tenev, who won the 2007 Vick Prize for the novel Party Headquarters. In addition to the translation of “Christo and All Those Bad Things,” the article also includes an brief interview with Tenev that primarily focuses on winning the Vick Prize.

How did you feel when you received the prize?

I was nervous and blinking constantly because I’m not used to my new glasses yet. After they handed me the award, everybody stepped back and for three whole minutes – it seemed like much longer to me! – I was alone amidst the photographers. I just stood there counting the flashes and regretting that since the advent of digital cameras nobody bothers limiting their shots. I also realised what celebrity defendants must feel like when surrounded by journalists, while they just sit there helplessly in handcuffs! I was happy, but couldn’t bring myself to grin and wave.

Silvia Choleva does a great job making Party Headquarters sound intriguing:

What do Chernobyl and S & M have in common? Not much, you may think, until you read Georgi Tenev’s Vick Prize-winning novel Partien dom, or Party Headquarters. But combining Communism, sex and nuclear disaster is all in a day’s work for the Sfumato dramatist.