The public handing-in of the literary award “Olivera Nikolova” for 2025 and the promotion of the winning novel “Dzhindzhudzhe” (Giantmidget) by Ermis Lafazanovski will be held on 5th of November at 19 o’clock at the bookstore “Literatura.mk” in “Diamond” mall, in Skopje, Macedonia.
The ceremony for the first winner of best unpublished novel for children and young, established by the publishing house “Ars Lamina”, will be chaired by the committee comprising of Olivera Kjorveziroska, Vesna Mojsova-Chepishevska and Jagoda Mihajlovska Georgieva.
The novel was published by “Libi”, subsidiary of “Ars Lamina publications”, and is embellished with illustrations by Zdravko Girov.
“Dzhindzhudzhe” is the first book for children and young by the eminent Macedonian writer Ermis Lafazanovski. It is a contemporary tale about pursuit of happiness, in our own time and place. The tale-like and skillful, witty referencing to the folklore traditions is brought through two characters: one giant and one midget, i.e. one huge and one small child, standing before the challenges of modern life, united in the so-called “mall-culture”, as an unavoidable fact of our time.
“Dzhindzhudzhe” is common, artistic name of two best friends, the Giant and the Midget, who function as one being. According to the principle of differences and contrasts (the first is huge and strong, intellectually inferior, the second is tiny and weak, intellectually superior) they are resourceful acrobats performing bicycle numbers around Skopje, notably “City mall”.
The “Olivera Nikolova” award, for best unpublished novel for children and young was established on the 11th of March 2025, on the birthday of the writer, first time without her physical presence among us. Nikolova died on the 3rd of November 2024.
At the first competition for the award, established by the “Ars Lamina” publishing house and the family of Nikolova, 38 manuscripts from 37 authors arrived. The novel “Sam vo roj“ (Alone In A Swarm) by Ivan Drichko (pseudonym of Sasho Kokalanov) was in the last shortlist.
The novel “Dzhindzhudzhe” will be available soon in the bigger bookstores and on-line through www.literatura.mk.