MALORIE BLACKMAN said she was in awe of this years International Writer of Courage 2022 winner, Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace, highlighting the academic, activist, and blogger from Bahrain’s staunch work in defence of freedom of expression.
The winner of the PEN Pinter Prize 2022, Blackman, made the announcement in an address at the British Library this week, whilst accepting her award. Dr Al-Singace was selected as co-winner by Blackman in collaboration with English PEN’s Writers at Risk Programme.
Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace has spent over a decade in prison, where he is serving a life-sentence for his role in the 2011 pro-democracy protests. In July 2021 he launched a hunger strike to protest his ill-treatment in prison, in particular the confiscation of a manuscript he had been working on for years.
Blackman, said: “When I first heard of the plight of Dr Al-Singace – engineer, blogger and activist, I was immediately struck by his commitment regarding effecting change in his homeland, including by highlighting the methods used to supress freedom of expression.
“He has been incarcerated for over a decade and has been on hunger strike and without solid food for over 400 days, which shines a spotlight on an immensely brave man who defines the word courage.”
The PEN Pinter Prize was established in 2009 by the charity English PEN, which defends freedom of expression and celebrates literature, in memory of Nobel-Laureate playwright Harold Pinter.
The prize is awarded annually to a writer of outstanding literary merit resident in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland or the Commonwealth who, in the words of Harold Pinter’s Nobel Prize in Literature speech, casts an ‘unflinching, unswerving’ gaze upon the world and shows a ‘fierce intellectual determination … to define the real truth of our lives and our societies’.
Blackman was chosen by this year’s judges: Chair of English PEN, Ruth Borthwick; publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster Margaret Busby; and writer, editor and translator Daniel Hahn.
Ruth Borthwick said: “This is the first time the PEN Pinter Prize has been awarded to a writer for young people so you’d expect them to be exceptional. Malorie Blackman has transformed the world of writing for young adults.
“Her work never talks down, and her readers have responded by taking her to their hearts. Malorie has created dynamic imaginary worlds in which her protagonists are living with and challenging issues of injustice in a way that is totally engaging as she is above all a wonderful storyteller.”
Margaret Busby commented: “I am delighted to concur with my fellow judges in awarding the 2022 Pinter Prize to Malorie Blackman.
“Her commitment to the fact that Young Adult reading, as well as exciting the imagination, can shape a lifelong ethical engagement with issues concerning social and political justice – such as racism and cultural difference – is outstanding.
“For more than two decades she has delivered visionary and challenging work that resonates far beyond the written page.”
Daniel Hahn added: “Encouraging young people to engage with political and social issues is vital work, and no one has done it better than Malorie Blackman.
“Many of her books raise ethical and moral questions, with narrative energy and an uncompromising honesty – usually presenting characters who find themselves in complex situations – challenging young readers to think and to question.
“A writer of serious commitment to her readers and to the power of stories.”
Blackman enthused: “I am truly honoured and more than a little stunned to be the recipient of the 2022 PEN Pinter Prize.
“I have long admired Harold Pinter for his courage and dedication to human rights and social justice and have always believed in the power of the creative arts to connect and communicate with others.
“I especially believe in the power of fiction to shine a spotlight on the truth and feel truly blessed that I predominantly write for the most discerning, honest audience – young adults and children.
“Thank you English PEN for considering me a worthy recipient of this award.”
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I have always admired and enjoyed Ms Blackman’s writing. My daughter has been bought up on her books and it’s wonderful that as a teenager and young adult my daughter introduced me to the noughts and crosses and now I have reintroduced my young grandsons to the wonderful reading time that my daughter and I had together.
I love Ms Blackman’s moral stance and the inquiring and challenging characters she portrays in her books.
A well deserved recipient of the Pinter award.