Johannes Anyuru
Johannes Anyuru (born 23 March 1979) is a Swedish poet and author.
Johannes Anyuru | |
---|---|
Born | Borås, Sweden | 23 March 1979
Nationality | Swedish |
Period | 2003– |
Notable work | Städerna inuti Hall |
Biography
Anyuru was born in Borås.[1] His father is from Uganda and his mother is Swedish.[2]
He debuted in 2003 with Det är bara gudarna som är nya (Only The Gods Are New), a poetry collection. In this collection of poems Anyuru used Homer's epic Iliad as a background and inspiration for the portrayal of immigrant neighborhoods. A place that is often mentioned in his poetry is the area around Mörners road in Växjö, where Anyuru lived as a child.[3] Reviews of this book linked his style to both older contemporary Swedish poets as Göran Sonnevi or Tomas Tranströmer, and hip hop band The Latin Kings.[4] Anyurus second poetry collection, Omega, is a much more downbeat since it deals with the loss of a close friend to cancer.[5] Anyurus third collection, Städerna inuti Hall (The Cities Inside Hall)[6] was published in 2009 and describes sad socio-political landscape.
His fourth book Skulle jag dö under andra himlar (If I Were to Die Under Other Skies)[7] is not a poetry book, but prose.
He has also worked with spoken word as part of the group Broken Word and a touring performance with the National Swedish Touring Theatre called Abstrakt rap. Both projects has been released as CD's.[8]
In December 2009 he debuted with his first play Förvaret (The Detention Centre), at Gothenburg City Theatre, co-written with Aleksander Motturi.[9]
During the summer of 2010, he was one of several hosts of legendary radio program Sommar.[10]
Bibliography
- Det är bara gudarna som är nya (poetry collection, 2003)
- Omega (poetry collection, 2005)
- Städerna inuti Hall (poetry collection, 2009)
- Skulle jag dö under andra himlar (novel, 2010)
- En storm kom från paradiset (novel, 2012)
- A Storm Blew in From Paradise (novel, 2015; translated into English by Rachel Willson-Broyles, 2019)
- De kommer att drunkna i sina mödrars tårar (novel, 2017)
- They Will Drown in their Mothers' Tears (novel, 2017; translated into English by Saskia Vogel, 2019)
Honours
- Nöjesguiden Magazine award for best read 2003
- Guldprinsen prize 2003
- Kallebergers scholarship 2005
- Spingo-scholarship 2005
- Augustpriset nominee 2012, winner 2017
References
- "Växjö – Johannes Anyuru sommarvärd i P1". 8 June 2010.
- SVT 1: Babel 9 September 2010
- Fanny Söderbäck (7 July 2003). "Gamla gudar och nya" (in Swedish). DN.se. Archived from the original on 31 July 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- Fries, Jonna (22 September 2009). "Litteratur: Johannes Anyuru, Städerna inuti Hall". tidningenkulturen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- Lundberg, Johan (18 August 2005). "Recension: Anyuru, Johannes – Omega (Övrigt) | Litteratur | SvD". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). Svd.se. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- Johannes Anyuru (16 January 2010). "Utdrag ur "Städerna inuti Hall" s. 27-30" (in Swedish). DN.se. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- "Skulle jag dö under andra himlar – Johannes Anyuru – Bokus bokhandel" (in Swedish). Bokus.com. 12 August 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- Andreas Ekström (10 November 2004). "Poeten som rappar orimmat" (in Swedish). DN.se. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- Ingegärd Waaranperä ingegard.waaranpera@dn.se (13 December 2009). ""Förvaret" på Nya Studion Göteborgs Stadsteater" (in Swedish). DN.se. Archived from the original on 17 December 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
- "Johannes Anyuru - Sommar i P1 | Sveriges Radio". Sverigesradio.se. 28 July 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010.