Sami Berdugo was born in 1970. He studied comparative literature and history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. At present, he teaches creative writing at Tel Aviv University and Bezalel Academy of Art and Design. He also holds writing workshops for youth. Berdugo has published novels, short stories and novellas. In 1998, he won the Haaretz Short Story Competition. He has also been awarded the Yaakov Shabtai Prize (2002), the Peter Schweifert Prize (2003), the Bernstein Prize (2003), the Prime Minister's Prize (2005), the Neuman Prize (2007) and the Isaac Leib and Rachel Goldberg Prize for his novel That Is to Say (2010). His novel, An Ongoing Tale on Land, was shortlisted for the Sapir Prize (2015) and won the Kugel Prize (2016), and his last novel, Because Guy [Parce que Guy], is shortlisted for the 2017 Sapir Prize. Berdugo is the first Israeli to be awarded a Sanskriti Foundation Residency (New Delhi, 2007). He is the winner of the 2020 Brenner Prize.
For literature such as this, frequencies have to be reset.
Haaretz
A challenge to Israelis’ concept of time and logic…language that succeeds in reviving dimensions that had been lost to Hebrew.
Israel Hayom
Shows a new level of Berdugo’s ability to leverage the Hebrew language in a sophisticated and original manner. A daring, but also credible, adventure.
A. B. Yehoshua
This book is another brick in Sami Bardugo’s very significant literary project, one of clarifying issues of alienation and belonging in Hebrew literature.
The Sapir Prize Jury