Colm Tóibín was awarded the 2017 Richard C. Holbrooke Prize for the power of his books to promote peace.

Irish novelist Colm Tóibín is this year’s winner of the 2017 Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award 2017, an award that honours the power of literature to promote peace, social justice and social understanding on a global scale.Among the Irish novelist’s books available in Greek, all translated by Athina Dimitriadou, are the following:Maria’s Testament, the heart-wrenching narrative of a mother that offers a human-centred perspective on the events that shaped humanity.Nora Webster: triggered by loss and grief, we read a gripping story of the heroine’s awakening and transformation.Brooklyn, a tender coming-of-age story of dilemmas (between family and love) that was successfully adapted for the cinema, earning three nominations at the 2016 Oscars.&Sharon Rab, co-chair of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation, which awards the prize, said: ‘Tóibín’s writing reminds us of the existence of humanity but also of the possibility of reconciliation, or more simply of understanding, which are the first steps towards achieving peace.’Colm Tóibín said of the award: “Through fiction, we learn to observe others. The page of a book is not a mirror. It is blank when I begin to write, but once written, it contains a version of the world... and exists to inspire readers.” The prize carries a cash award of $10,000, and previous winners include Studs Terk, Taylor Branch, Gloria Steinem and Elie Wiesel. The award ceremony will take place in Dayton, Ohio, on 5 November 2017. Find out more about the prize here. Find out more about Colm Tóibín and his books published by Ikaros here.