Georgi Gospodinov (b. 1968)
The most translated contemporary Bulgarian writer. He writes poetry, short stories, plays and novels.
- Natural Novel („Естествен роман“, 1999) – a novel about the novel and about a falling-apart marriage. Translated into dozens of languages.
- The Physics of Sorrow (2011) – the Minotaur, grandmothers and grandfathers, sorrow in the provinces.
- Time Shelter (2020) – a clinic for people with dementia in which every floor takes you back to a different decade. Soon all of Europe decides to vote on which past it wants to live in. Funny, sad and disturbingly accurate.
- The Gardener and Death (2023) – a book about the death of a father, the garden and sorrow. It came out in English in 2025 as Death and the Gardener.
Rene Karabash
Writer and poet. Her novel „Остайница“ (Ostaynitsa) is about the “sworn virgins” of Northern Albania – women who renounce their female identity in order to live as men. It was published in English as She Who Remains, translated by Izidora Angel.
Other Names
- Alek Popov – Mission London („Мисия Лондон“, 2001), a satire about the Bulgarian embassy in London. It is funny because it is almost documentary.
- Zahari Karabashliev – 18% Gray („18% сиво“, 2008), a road novel across America.
- Milen Ruskov – Ascent („Възвишение“, 2011), a tragicomic novel about two hajduks, written in the language of the Revival period. Winner of the European Union Prize for Literature.
- Teodora Dimova – The Mothers („Майките“, 2006), about violence and alienation among teenagers.
- Deyan Enev, Krasimir Damyanov, Elena Alexieva – more voices worth getting to know.
Between us
Bulgarian literature spent decades afraid that nobody was reading it abroad. It turned out that someone just needed to translate it well. Thank you to the translators – without them there would be no next page.