The ceremony of the 2012 State Literary Awards (for books released in 2011) took place at the Onassis Culture Center. A number of authors were critical of the upcoming closure of the National Book Center and the general politics regarding books.
The Deputy Minister of Culture Kostas Tzavaras noted that the State has been honoring literature since 1956 and that “the production of important intellectual work is testament that the country’s creative forces are still with us and actively contributing to the projection of our modern culture”.
The Grand Prize was awarded to Thanasis Valtinos for the entire body of his work. Author Giorgos Sympardis won the Novel Award, while the award for best Short Story or Novel was split between Giannis Efstratiadis, for whom it was the first literary award and Ersi Sotiropoulou.
While receiving their awards Ersi Sotiropoulou and Antonis Liakos both denounced the General Secretariat of Culture for the lack of any real policy for books and the decision to close down the National Book Center. Menis Koumantareas also made similar comments when he presented Sympardis with his award.
Katerina Angelaki-Rooke won the Poetry Award and stated that such awards are a reminder that poetry is still alive. Antonis Liakos bagged the Review Award and spoke of the ancient bonds between literature and historiography. Alexandros Massavetas won the Biography-Travel Literature Award, while the award for best newcomers was split between poets Thomas Ioannou and Thomas Tsalapatis, who claimed that poets are forced to write in a de facto alienated world or acute sociopolitical problems.
The Award for Best Translation of Foreign Literature was won by Panagiotis Chorozidis, while N. M. Skouteropoulos won the Award for Best Interpretation of Ancient Greek Literature. The Awards for Best Translation of Greek Literature were bagged by Vicente Fernandez Gonzalez, Leandro Garcia Ramirez, Maria Lopez Villalba and Ioanna Nikolaidou.
Christina Frangeskaki won the award for Best Children’s Book, while Eleni Katsama was awarded the top prize for Best Young Adult Literature. The Award for Best Illustrated Children’s Literature was split between illustrators Vasilis Papatsarouchas and Iris Samartzis and authors Evgenios Trivizas and Antonis Papatheodoulou. Finally, Christos Boulotis won the Children’s Knowledge Award.
