Apr 3, 2009, 16:41 GMT
Copenhagen - Norwegian author Per Petterson was Friday named winner of the 2009 Nordic Council Literature Prize, worth 350,000 kroner (63,000 dollars).
Petterson was cited for the novel Jeg forbanner tidens elv (roughly translated as, I Curse The River of Time).
It conveys in 'poetic and quiet language ... just how difficult it is to say to each other those things we feel are the most important,' the jury said.
Petterson, born in 1952, made his debut with a collection of short stories in 1987. A trained librarian, he has written five novels including Out Stealing Horses, In the Wake, and To Siberia.
Last year, Danish author Naja Marie Aidt won the award.
Petterson was due to receive the award late October during the Nordic Council Session in the Swedish capital, Stockholm.
The Nordic Council Literature Prize has been awarded since 1962, 10 years after the Nordic Council was formed.
The council is the forum for inter-parliamentary cooperation between the five Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, plus three autonomous territories, including Greenland.
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