Intan Paramaditha has become the first Indonesian writer to be named a finalist for the US National Book Award, the Jakarta Post reports. Her novel Night of a Thousand Hells, first published in Indonesian in 2023 as Malam Seribu Jahanam, is shortlisted in the translated literature category.
The English edition was translated by Stephen J. Epstein and Tiffany Tsao. The judges praised the way it weaves Indonesian folklore and Islamic mysticism into a story of sisters, migration and family, moving between Indonesia, the United States and Australia.
Intan said she hopes the recognition will draw readers to Indonesian literature, which remains little known abroad despite the country’s population of more than 280 million. For translators and publishers working to bring Southeast Asian writing to new audiences, it is a landmark moment.
Source: The Jakarta Post