American Writer Lydia Davis won 2013 Man Booker International Prize

American writer Lydia Davis won 2013 Man Booker International Prize for her innovative and influential writing. The winner of the Prize was announced at the awards ceremony at Victoria and Albert Museum in London on 22 may 2013. This was the fifth Man Booker International Prize.

Lydia Davis is a professor of creative writing at the University of Albany. She is also an accomplished translator. Her works include The End of the Story and Varieties of Disturbance. Lydia Davis is also known for her work as a translator of French literature and philosophy, most notably of Marcel Proust and Gustave Flaubert. Her translations led her to be named a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government.

Well-known Kannada author UR Ananthamurthy was the only Indian to be shortlisted for the prestigious award.

The Man Booker International Prize recognises one writer for his or her achievement in fiction. Worth 60000 ponds, the prize is awarded every two years to a living author who has published fiction either originally in English or whose work is generally available in translation in the English language. The winner is chosen solely at the discretion of the judging panel and there are no submissions from publishers.

The Man Booker International Prize is significantly different from the annual Man Booker Prize for Fiction. In seeking out literary excellence, the judges consider a writer's body of work rather than a single novel.