2008 in literature

	… 1998; 1999; 2000; 2001; 2002; 2003; 2004; ; 2005; 2006; 2007; 2008; 2009; 2010; 2011; ; 2012; 2013; 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017; 2018 …;
	In poetry 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
	Art; Archaeology; Architecture; Literature; Music; Philosophy; Science +...;

This article presents lists of the literary events and publications in 2008.

Events

January 1 – In the UK's 2008 New Year Honours List, Hanif Kureishi (CBE), Jenny Uglow (OBE), Peter Vansittart (OBE) and Debjani Chatterjee (MBE) are all rewarded for "services to literature."
February 29 – Belgian-born 'Misha Defonseca' admits that her bestselling Misha: A Mémoire of the Holocaust Years (1997) is a literary forgery.
April – Signet Books announce they are ceasing to publish American historical romance novelist Cassie Edwards following a dispute over plagiarism.
May 7–11 – The first Palestine Festival of Literature is held.
June 15 – Gore Vidal, asked in a New York Times interview how he felt about the death of his great rival William F. Buckley, Jr., replies: "I thought hell is bound to be a livelier place, as he joins forever those whom he served in life, applauding their prejudices and fanning their hatred."
July – Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children (1981) is the winner of a poll to select the "Best of the Booker".

Uncertain date

The first Twitter novels appear.

New books

Poetry

Non-fiction

The Academi – Encyclopaedia of Wales (Gwyddoniadur Cymru) (January)
Julie Andrews – Home: A Memoir of My Early Years (April 1)
Kwame Anthony Appiah – Experiments in Ethics
Dan Ariely – Predictably Irrational (February 19)
Margaret Atwood – Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth (October 1)
Mary Beard – Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town
Dionne Brand – A Kind of Perfect Speech (Ralph Gustafson Lecture)
Augusten Burroughs – A Wolf at the Table (April 29)
Michael Chabon – Maps and Legends (May 1)
D. K. Chakrabarti – The Battle for Ancient India: An essay in the sociopolitics of Indian archaeology
Sloane Crosley – I Was Told There'd Be Cake (April 1)
John Duignan – The Complex: An Insider Exposes the Covert World of the Church of Scientology (October 7)
Eminem – The Way I Am (October 21)
Richard Florida – Who's Your City? (March)
Raymond Geuss – Philosophy and Real Politics
Philip Hoare – Leviathan, or The Whale (September 16)
Chloe Hooper – The Tall Man: Death and Life on Palm Island
B. B. Lal – Rāma, His Historicity, Mandir, and Setu: Evidence of Literature, Archaeology, and Other Sciences
Scholastique Mukasonga – La femme aux pieds nus (The Barefoot Woman)
Haruki Murakami (translated by Philip Gabriel) – What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (July 29)
Shuja Nawaz – Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within
Frances Osborne – The Bolter: Idina Sackville
Chris Pash – The Last Whale
Peter Rees – The Other ANZACs
David Sedaris – When You Are Engulfed in Flames (June 3)
Vaclav Smil – Energy in Nature and Society: General Energetics of Complex Systems
Chunghee Sarah Soh – The Comfort Women: Sexual Violence and Postcolonial Memory in Korea and Japan
Kate Summerscale – The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher, or The Murder at Road Hill House (April)
Ronnie Thompson (pseudonym) – Screwed: The Truth About Life as a Prison Officer (January 24)
Bjørn Christian Tørrissen – One for the Road (January 31; translation of I pose og sekk!, 2005)
Barbara Walters – Audition: A Memoir (May 6)
Russell Wangersky – Burning Down the House: Fighting Fires and Losing Myself^[2]
Meralda Warren and others – Mi Base side orn Pitcairn (My Favourite Place on Pitcairn, first book published in Pitkern creole)
Dagmar S. Wodtko, Britta Irslinger and Carolin Schneider (eds.) – Nomina im Indogermanischen Lexikon
Jim Holt – Stop Me If You've Heard This: A History and Philosophy of Jokes

Deaths

Margaret Truman

January 2 – George MacDonald Fraser, Scottish novelist and screenplay writer (born 1925)
January 3 – Henri Chopin, French poet (born 1922)
January 11 – Nancy Phelan, Australian writer (born 1913)
January 13 – Patricia Verdugo, Chilean journalist and writer (born 1947)
January 16 – Hone Tuwhare, New Zealand poet (born 1922)
January 17 – Edward D. Hoch, American detective fiction writer (born 1930)
January 26
- John Ardagh, Nyasaland-born English journalist and writer (born 1928)
- Abraham Brumberg, American writer and editor (born 1926)
January 29 – Margaret Truman, American crime novelist and singer (born 1924)
January 30 – Miles Kington, Northern Irish-born English journalist and writer (born 1941)

Steve Gerber

February 4 – Rose Hacker, English writer and journalist (born 1906)
February 7 – Richard Altick, American literary historian (born 1915)
February 8 – Phyllis A. Whitney, Japan-born American mystery writer (born 1903)
February 10 – Steve Gerber, American comic book writer (born 1947)
February 18 – Alain Robbe-Grillet, French novelist (born 1922)
February 21
- Archie Hind, Scottish novelist (born 1928)
- Robin Moore, American novelist and memoirist (born 1925)
February 22 – Stephen Marlowe, American science fiction and crime writer (born 1928)
February 28 – Julian Rathbone, English novelist (born 1935)
February 29 – Val Plumwood (Val Routley), Australian philosopher (born 1939)

Arthur C. Clarke

March 16 – Jonathan Williams, American poet (born 1929)
March 19
- Arthur C. Clarke, English science fiction writer and futurologist (born 1917)
- Hugo Claus, Belgian writer in Flemish and English (born 1929)
March 23 – E. A. Markham, Montserrat poet, writer and activist (born 1939)
April 3 – Andrew Crozier, English poet and scholar (born 1943)
April 7 – Ludu Daw Amar, Burmese writer and journalist (born 1915)
April 13 – Robert Greacen, Irish poet (born 1920)
April 17
- Aimé Césaire, Martinique poet and writer in French (born 1913)
- Zoya Krakhmalnikova, Russian writer and editor (born 1929)
April 18
- Michael de Larrabeiti, English young-adult novelist and travel writer (born 1934)
- William W. Warner, American biologist and Pulitzer Prize writer (born 1920)
May 1 – Elaine Dundy, American novelist, biographer and playwright (born 1921)
May 9 – Nuala O'Faolain, Irish critic and writer (born 1940)
May 11 – Jeff Torrington, Scottish novelist (born 1935)
May 12 – Oakley Hall, American novelist (born 1920)
May 14 – Roy Heath, Guyanese novelist (born 1926)
May 19 – Vijay Tendulkar, Indian playwright (born 1928)
May 23 – Alan Brien, English journalist and novelist (born 1925)
May 28 – Elinor Lyon, British children's writer (born 1921)

Chinghiz Aitmatov

June 2 – Ferenc Fejtő, Hungarian-born French historian and journalist (born 1909)
June 4 – Matthew Bruccoli, American biographer and scholar (born 1931)
June 5 – Angus Calder, British writer and scholar (born 1942)
June 8 – Peter Rühmkorf, German poet and writer (born 1929)
June 9 – Algis Budrys (John A. Sentry), American science fiction writer of Lithuanian origin (born 1931)
June 10
- Chinghiz Aitmatov, Kyrgyz writer in Kyrgyz and Russian (born 1928)
- Eliot Asinof, American novelist and baseball writer (born 1919)
June 16 – Mario Rigoni Stern, Italian novelist (born 1921)
June 18 – Tasha Tudor, American children's writer and illustrator (born 1915)
June 22 – Albert Cossery, Egyptian-born French novelist (born 1913)
June 24 – Ruth Cardoso, Brazilian anthropologist and writer (born 1930)
June 25 – Lyall Watson, South African scientist and new age writer (born 1939)
June 27 – Lenka Reinerová, Czech writer in German (born 1916)

Thomas M. Disch

July 1
- Clay Felker, American magazine editor and journalist (born 1925)
- Robert Harling, English typographer and novelist (born 1910)
July 2 – Simone Ortega, Spanish cookery writer (born 1919)
July 4
- Thomas M. Disch, American science fiction author and poet. (born 1940)
- Janwillem van de Wetering, Dutch novelist and writer in Dutch and English (born 1931)
July 20 – Roger Wolcott Hall, American memoirist and novelist (born 1919)
July 27 – Bob Crampsey, Scottish writer (born 1930)
July 30 – Peter Coke, English playwright (born 1913)

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

August 3 – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Russian writer and Nobel laureate (born 1918)
August 7 – Simon Gray, English playwright and memoirist (born 1936)
August 9 – Mahmoud Darwish, Palestinian poet (born 1942)
August 11 – George Furth, American playwright (born 1932)
August 17 – Dave Freeman, American writer and advertising executive (born 1961)
August 23 – John Russell, English art critic (born 1919)
August 25 – Ahmed Faraz (Syed Akhmad Shah), Pakistani poet in Urdu (born 1931)
August 31 – Ken Campbell, English novelist and playwright (born 1941)

David Foster Wallace

September 5 – Robert Giroux, American editor and publisher (born 1914)
September 7 – Gregory Mcdonald, American mystery writer (born 1937)
September 12 – David Foster Wallace, American novelist (born 1962)
September 17 – James Crumley, American crime writer (born 1939)
September 20 – Duncan Glen, Scottish poet, critic and literary historian (born 1933)
September 23 – William Woodruff, English historian and autobiographer (born 1916)
September 24 – Bengt Anderberg, Swedish poet, novelist and children's writer (born 1920)
September 29 – Hayden Carruth, American poet and literary critic (born 1921)
October 4 – Peter Vansittart, English novelist and historical writer (born 1920)
October 14 – Barrington J. Bayley, English science fiction writer (born 1937)
October 26 – Tony Hillerman, American mystery writer (born 1925)
October 27 – Es'kia Mphahlele, South African writer in English (born 1919)
October 29 – William Wharton (Albert William Du Aime), American novelist (born 1925)
October 31 – Studs Terkel, American historian and broadcaster (born 1912)
November 4 – Michael Crichton, American writer and scholar (born 1942)
November 13 – Jules Archer, American historian and author (born 1915)
November 14 – Kristin Hunter, American author and academic (born 1931)
December 1 – Dorothy Sterling, American non-fiction writer for children and historian (born 1913)^[3]
December 15 – Anne-Catharina Vestly, Norwegian children's book author (born 1920)^[4]
December 24 – Harold Pinter, English playwright and screenwriter (born 1930).
December 31 – Donald E. Westlake, American novelist (born 1933)^[5]

Awards and honors

Australia

Miles Franklin Award: Steven Carroll, The Time We Have Taken

Canada

Canada Reads: Paul Quarrington, King Leary
Dayne Ogilvie Prize: Main award, Zoe Whittall; honours of distinction, Brian Francis, John Miller.
Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction: Bruce Serafin, Stardust^[6]
Governor General's Awards: Multiple categories; see 2008 Governor General's Awards.
Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction: Taras Grescoe, Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood
Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize: Miriam Toews, The Flying Troutmans
Scotiabank Giller Prize: Joseph Boyden, Through Black Spruce
Writers' Trust Engel/Findley Award: Michael Winter

United Kingdom

United States

Lambda Literary Awards: Multiple categories; see 2008 Lambda Literary Awards.
National Book Award for Fiction: to Shadow Country by Peter Matthiessen
National Book Critics Circle Award: to 2666 by Roberto Bolaño
Newbery Medal for children's literature: Laura Amy Schlitz, Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village
PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction: Kate Christensen, The Great Man
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction: Junot Diaz, The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Whiting Awards:

Fiction: Mischa Berlinski, Laleh Khadivi, Manuel Muñoz, Benjamin Percy, Lysley Tenorio

Nonfiction: Donovan Hohn

Plays: Dael Orlandersmith

Poetry: Rick Hilles, Douglas Kearney, Julie Sheehan

References

^ Sihvonen, Lauri (September 24, 2008). "Lauri Sihvonen on Sofi Oksanen's novel: A Body and a Blowfly". FILI. Archived from the original on July 9, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2010.
^ Faculty of Arts, 2009, Edna Staebler Award Archived June 6, 2014, at Archive-It, Wilfrid Laurier University, Previous winners, Russell Wangersky, Retrieved 11/16/2012
^ Staino, Rocco (January 5, 2009). "In Memoriam: Children's Authors and Illustrators Who Died in 2008". School Library Journal. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2009.
^ Hedeman, Anders (December 15, 2008). "Anne-Cath. Vestly er død". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on December 19, 2008. Retrieved December 15, 2008.
^ The New York Times 2009-01-01.
^ Faculty of Arts, March 20, 2009, Edna Staebler Award Archived December 8, 2012, at Archive.today, Wilfrid Laurier University Headlines (News Releases), Retrieved 11/27/2012

2008 in literature

Contents

Events

New books

Fiction

Genre fiction

Children and young people

Drama

Poetry

Non-fiction

Deaths

Awards and honors

Australia

Canada

United Kingdom

United States

References

See also