Patrik Banga becomes first Romani person to win Debut of the Year in Czech Republic's Magnesia Litera literary award
The Magnesia Litera awards have been announced in a ceremony at the National Theater's "New Stage" (Nová scéna) in Prague, Czech Republic. Patrik Banga won the Debut of the Year prize for his book The Real Way Out (Skutečná cesta ven), becoming the first Romani person ever to receive the award.
ROMEA TV broadcast an interview with the author live online after the announcement. In his acceptance speech, Banga said “I thank the Host publishing house for believing in me and their editors for surviving this with me. I thank my brother for recording the audiobook with me and my wife Lenka, who was my first reader.”
Banga also said he believes Czech society has made progress in relation to Romani people. “We’ve made progress in that nobody is chasing us down in the streets. The fact that I am standing here is a result of the fact that we have made a lot of progress. I hope this prize will open the door for other Romani people who will not be afraid to write and that the next one here will not be seen as a ‘Romani author’, but just an author,” he said during the ceremony announcing the best books of 2022, broadcast live by the ČT Art channel of the public broadcaster.
