Merits in the field of literature are evaluated not only by readers, but also by professionals and other authors. Various prizes are regularly presented for writers, both global and Russian, for example, the Big Book Prize.
The Big Book Prize can be called the largest award in the field of literature for authors who write in Russian. This award has been presented since 2005.
Winners are selected in several stages. After collecting applications, they are considered and a list of nominees is created. It includes prosaic works approved by the expert council of the award. Their number is not limited by the regulations and depends both on the quantity and quality of the applications received. In 2012, the list included 41 works. The list included new works by such famous authors as Daniil Granin, and the book of the popular screenwriter and director Alexander Sokurov.
A total of 401 applications were submitted. For comparison, in 2006 there were only 71. A significant increase in the number of selected works indicates an increase in the popularity of the competition.
At the end of May, a list of finalists is published. The finals are no more than 15 works. In 2012, their number was 14. Among them, there are few authors known to the general reader. However, the list included, for example, Vladimir Makanin, who had previously become the winner of the second prize. Also on the list are the works of Zakhar Prilepin, known not only for his writing, but also for his political activities, primarily for his connection with the National Bolshevik Party (NBP).
The representative of science fiction writers among the candidates for the prize was Maria Galina with the work "Medvedka". Military topics were included in the list along with Daniel Granin’s book My Lieutenant
."The work of Alexander Grigorenko" Mebat "was listed as dedicated to the complex conflict of nature and civilization. The" cynicism teacher, "a book by Vladimir Gubailovsky, was noted largely due to a new approach to a fairly old story about the interaction of" physicists "and" lyricists ". Andrei Dmitriev, not only a writer, but also a screenwriter, became a candidate for the award with a manuscript of the book" Peasant and Teenager ".
Sergei Nosov, a well-known playwright and winner of many awards, also became a candidate for the main prize with the novel "Francoise, or Path to the Glacier." Valery Popov became the ninth number in the list of prizes with the story "Dance to Death." Prose about crime has also become a candidate for a prize in the form of Andrei Rubanov's collection of short stories “Shameful exploits.” The work of Marina Stepnova "Women of Lazarus" became a representative of the genre of romantic literature.
In the list you can find not only fiction, but also documentary prose, memories. Such was the book about the writer Aksenov, created by his friends Alexander Kabakov and Evgeny Popov. Also, on the basis of church traditions, a book by archimandrite Tikhon "Unholy Saints" was created, designed to bring Christianity closer to an unchurched reader.
The list of candidates is completed by the writer Lena Eltang, now living in Vilnius, with the work “Other Drums”.
According to the results of the voting, the jury is awarded the first, second and third prizes. Readers also express their opinion, and the author of the best work in their opinion is awarded a prize of audience sympathy. In addition, the awarding of special awards "For contribution to literature" and "For honor and dignity" is possible. They are issued not for a specific novel or story, but for creative successes in general. Winners in these nominations for the 2012 Prize will only be known in the fall of that year.
