Jimsher Rekhviashvili, who writes under the pseudonym Dato Kardava, received the 2016 Litera Literary Prize from the Georgian Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection presented by the Writer’s House of Georgia in the “Best Novel/Collection of Stories” category.
Rekhviashlivi won the award for his collection of short stories, Esau’s Hands. Rekhviashlivi’s work was selected after a field of 99 submissions of Georgian literary works published in 2015 was narrowed down to 22 finalists by a jury.
“We are very proud of Jimsher because the competition was tough,” said Georgian Service Director David Kakabadze. “It was great to receive a win for the company.”
Rekhviashvili’s collection was published by INTELEKTI publishing. It is his second collection of short stories. His first, Noah’s Doves, was published in 2005. The eclectic body of stories ranges from that of a weatherman to a psychological thriller about a man on trial for murdering his wife. The stories are not connected by plot or characters but are all contemporary fictional stories.
Rekhviashvili has worked for RFE/RL’s Georgian Service for five years, initially as a stringer from the city of Rustavi, and later at the Georgian Service’s Tbilisi bureau. He specializes in reporting on social issues.