International PEN Club of Puerto Rico Awards “Candela” by Rey Andújar

The Novel “Candela” by Dominican writer Rey Emmanuel Andújar, published at the end of 2007 by Alfaguara was recognized as the second best novel of the year by the PEN Club of Puerto Rico.

‘Candela’ is a mix of drama and beauty, climate and taste of the Caribbean .”

Awilda Cáez, representative of the novel jury, said she decided to award Andújar’s novel in that it “dramatically brings together two worlds. Daring, artistic, literary and universal, “Candela” is a mix of drama and beauty, climate and taste of the Caribbean .” The novel, published in Santo Domingo is now in its second printing in less than a year. It has been distributed in Puerto Rico and various cities in the United States in addition to being available on Amazon.   

When the announcement of his nomination was made, the author was in Havana taking part in a screenwriting workshop being given by Gabriel García Márquez and Senel Paz. Mr. Andújar said he felt “a mix of strangeness and pride in that this award represents international readership and recognition. Although Spanish is spoken in Puerto Rico , we are very different culturally. My writing is very influenced by my Dominican roots.”

Throughout the awards ceremony, the President of the PEN Club of Puerto Rico, Mairym Cruz-Bernall – a Puerto Rican writer – stressed the quality of the books that are awarded by the organization and noted the importance the prizes have on international distribution of the selected writers’ works. The categories considered for prizes are: Novel, Short Story, Essay, Poetry, Theater and Children’s Literature. The awards ceremony was held in the Faculty Hall of the University of the Sacred Heart of Saturce, Puerto Rico . Many literary figures and Caribbean artists attended the event.  

Some twenty books were awarded for literary quality, creativity and originality. All hold a place of excellence in the history of Puerto Rican-universal literature.  Some of the prize-winning authors, in various categories, include  Juan Antonio Ramos, Marta Aponte Alsina, Tina Casanova, Mercedes López-Baralt, Zoe Jiménez Corretjer, Rafael Franco Steeves, Iván Figueroa Luciano, Javier Ávila land Lowell Fiet.

The International PEN Club was founded in 1921 to promote literary excellence. Today there are 144 centers in 102 countries around the world which recognize literature as an essential element for the understanding and integration of different cultures. According to the renowned writer, Mario Vargas Llosa, “in times of world division, the PEN Club is one of the few institutions that consistently keep open the bridges of social communication.”