The Spanish writer Álvaro Pombo has been awarded the Cervantes Prize 2024, the most important recognition in Spanish literature, which includes a cash prize of 125,000 euros. The decision of the jury, announced by the Minister of Culture of Spain, Ernest Urtasun, highlighted Pombo's ability to create his own literary world that moves and his extraordinary lyrical and singular creative prose.
"Álvaro Pombo has created what defines great writers, an imperishable and essential literary world that moves and empathizes," concluded the jury. Pombo, born in Santander in 1939, was recognized for his skill in exploring the human condition through deep emotional and contradictory reflections in his novels, poems, and essays.
The jury, chaired by the previous winner of the award, Luis Mateo Díez, praised Álvaro Pombo's extraordinary creative personality and the uniqueness of his narrative. They noted that his works reflect a language that distorts reality in an ironic and humorous way. They also highlighted the orality present in his prose, manifested through a style that seeks to emulate the naturalness of conversation.
In the words of the jury's decision, "In his creations, he shows the world through the construction of a language in which the distortions of reality appear reflected under the disguise of irony and humor." Álvaro Pombo's work has been recognized for its deep exploration of human life and its ability to connect with the reader through universal emotions.
