Filipino author Miguel Syjuco wins the 2008 Man Asian Literary Prize for his novel Ilustrado, a fictional account of a young Filipino caught within a notorious scandal spanning over the Philippine history.

The panel of judges for the 2008 prize praised Ilustrado:

"The shortlist for the Man Asian prize testifies to the great vitality of the novel in Asian societies undergoing hectic and unexpected transformations. In the end, we had to choose; and Ilustrado seems to us to possess formal ambition, linguistic inventiveness and sociopolitical insight in the most satisfying measure. Brilliantly conceived, and stylishly executed, it covers a large and tumultuous historical period with seemingly effortless skill. It is also ceaselessly entertaining, frequently raunchy, and effervescent with humour."

The prize winner was announced at a celebratory dinner at The Peninsula Hong Kong. Miguel Syjuco was awarded USD 10,000.

Ilustrado was selected from shortlist of five:

Kavery Nambisan, The Story that Must Not be Told
Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi, The Lost Flamingoes of Bombay
Miguel Syjuco, Ilustrado
Yu Hua, Brothers
Alfred A. Yuson, The Music Child

The Man Asian Literary Prize is considered the most prestigious award of its kind in Asia.

DISCLAIMER:
Views expressed in this section are those of the readers and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of NBDB. NBDB.gov.ph does not knowingly publish false information and may not be held liable for the views of readers exercising their right to free expression.

FEEDBACK POLICY:
Only comments directly related to the article open for comment will be allowed for posting. The moderator will delete all other comments. Even when the comment is relevant to the topic, the moderator will also delete posts that contain foul language, personal attacks against anybody or against institutions, are sarcastic and promote an atmosphere of negativity, those posted more than once and written in bold or capital letters or contain special characters and images, and those that promote products, services, and blogs.