Gary Shteyngart Wins Wodehouse Prize For Comic Fiction

Gary Shteyngart in a forthcoming interview with Sampsonia Way. Photo: Laura Mustio.

Gary Shteyngart, who read for City of Asylum/Pittsburgh on May 10, became the first American author to win the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction this Tuesday.

The Wodehouse Prize, given to Shteyngart for his 2010 novel Super Sad True Love Story, commemorates books that capture “the comic spirit of P.G. Wodehouse,” a renowned British humorist; past winners include Ian McEwan (2010) and Howard Jacobson (2000). In keeping with tradition, Shteyngart will receive a trip to the Hay Literary Festival in Wales, a hearty supply of champagne from Bollinger, the prize’s sponsor, and an extensive collection of Wodehouse’s works; additionally, a Gloucestershire Old Spot pig will be named after the novel.

“My plan is I’m going to get really drunk with the pig and go to a pub in Glasgow,” Shteyngart told The Washington Post. “That’s usually how my trips over there turn out.”

Watch Gary Shteyngart reading at City of Asylum/Pittsburgh