Michal Ajvaz

Michal Ajvaz (born October 30, 1949 in Prague) is a Czech novelist, poet and translator, an exponent of the literary style known as magic realism.

Biography

Born to the family of Russian exile, Ajvaz studied Czech studies and esthetics at Charles University in Prague. Currently he works as a researcher at Prague's Center for Theoretical Studies and, in addition to fiction, has published an essay on Derrida and a book-length meditation on Borges. His novel Prázdné ulice was awarded the Jaroslav Seifert Prize for literary achievement (2005), the most prestigious literary award in the Czech Republic.

Bibliography

This incomplete list gives the titles of Ajvaz's works.

• 1989 – Vražda v hotelu Intercontinental (Murder in the Intercontinental Hotel)
• 1991 - Návrat starého varana (Return of the Old Komodo Dragon)
• 1993 – Druhé město (The Other City)
• 1994 - Znak a bytí
• 1997 - Tyrkysový orel (Turquoise Eagle)
• 1997 - Tajemství knihy
• 2001 – Zlatý věk (Golden Age)
• 2003 - Světelný prales
• 2003 - Sny pragmatik
• 2004 – Prázdné ulice (Empty Streets)
• 2006 - Příběh znaků a prázdna
• 2006 – Padesát pět měst (55 Cities)
• 2007 – L´autre ile (French translation of Zlatý věk)
• 2008 - "Cesta na jih" (Voyage to the South)
• 2009 – The Other City (English translation)
• 2010 - The Golden Age (English translation)

See also

	Poetry portal
	Novels portal

• List of Czech writers

External links

• Jonathan Bolton's essay on "Reading Michal Ajvaz" in CONTEXT.
• List of works by Michal Ajvaz in the Czech National Library
• Dalkey Archive Press site for The Other City
• Translation of prose piece from Padesát pět měst (in The Cafe Irreal)

Persondata
Name	Ajvaz, Michal
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	October 30, 1949
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death