Literature can be more than what is commonly imagined. The Mexican-born artist Verónica Gerber Bicecci took her novel “Empty Crowd” to a new level with doodles and diagrams. Bicecci talks about the end of a relationship. About her mother, who fled the Argentine military dictatorship to Mexico and became invisible there.
For the publishing courage to take the risk of this new form, the Augsburg-based Maro Verlag was awarded the Hotlist Prize worth 5,000 euros. “With the unusual, much-forgotten theme of the novel, the fluent translation and the creative and elegant presentation, to which the many illustrations also contribute, ‘Leere Menge’ not only convinced the jury, but thrilled them” – said the jury Justification for the unanimous decision.
With the “Dörlemann ZuSatz” of the Hotlist Prize, Hochroth Verlag Munich is awarded for “Handpicked – Sign Language Poetry in Spoken Language” and receives a typesetting voucher for 1,500 euros. Edited by Franziska Winkler, the poetry collection, which has been expanded to include an essay, is a translation from sign language. The hotlist has been determined by internet voting and jury decisions since 2009. The non-profit organization’s prize is awarded to independent publishers.