Jānis Joņevs
Jānis Joņevs (1980) is a prose writer. His first novel "Jelgava '94" is set in Jelgava town in 1994 and focuses on a generation which experienced their youth in the nineties when Latvia had just regained independence.
Birth time/place
21.03.1980
Jelgava
Personal information
Jānis Joņevs was born on March 21, 1980 in Jelgava.
He graduated from the
Latvian Academy of Culture.
Since 2002: he has been
working as a copywriter, reviewer and translator from
French.
Professional activity
2013: his first novel "Jelgava ‘94" was published. It has been praised and widely discussed by critics and readers alike. It received the 1 Kg of Culture Prize awarded by the LTV 1 culture programme 100 G of Culture; in the TV show Great Reading it was named among a hundred of the most favourite Latvian books of all time; the Children Jury (a project involving young readers from all over Latvia) chose the book as the favourite reading in the age group 15+; and "Jelgava ‘94" has been awarded the Annual Latvian Literature Award as the best debut in 2013. Jānis Joņevs received the European Union Prize for Literature 2014.
Prose
2013: Jelgava '94.Children's books
2014: Slepenie svētki [Secret Celebration].Quotes
"Joņevs’s debut in the genre of novel has proved to be a real hit and bestseller in Latvia. The story is centred in the 1990s in the town of Jelgava and the rather shortlived craze for the alternative culture of heavy metal music. The atmosphere is seen from the ‘inside’ – the text incorporates elements of both an intimate diary of a youngster trying to find himself by joining a subculture and a skilful, detailed and almost documentary depiction of recent history, i.e. the beginnings of the second independence of Latvia. As an additional bonus, the story seems even more captivating for the generation sharing the same perception of the world – Joņevs is the first among them who has managed to stir their memories by transforming them into full-fledged literature."
Occupations
Travelled
1990
Alūksne
(pēc autora sniegtajām ziņām)
Education
1998
Jelgavas 2. ģimnāzija
Mātera iela 44, Jelgava
Jelgavas 2. ģimnāzija
2002
Latvian Academy of Culture
Ludzas iela 24, Rīga
Latvijas Kultūras akadēmija, bakalaura un maģistra grāds
Working place
2002
Strādā reklāmas aģentūrās par tekstu autoru. Publicē grāmatu recenzijas un tulkojumus no franču valodas.
Awards
Sabiedrisko mediju balva "Kilograms kultūras"
Balva piešķirta par romānu "Jelgava 94".
Literatūra un grāmatniecība
2013
Eiropas Savienības Literatūras balva
Balva piešķirta par romānu "Jelgava 94".
2014
Annual Latvian Literary Award
Balva piešķirta par grāmatu "Jelgava 94".
Debija
2014
AKKA/LAA Autora balva
Balva piešķirta par romānu "Jelgava 94".
2015
Theatre Award Performer's Night
kopā ar Aneti Konsti
Gada sasniegums oriģināldramaturģijā (teksts, luga vai scenārijs)
Nominee
2016
Autortiesību bezgalības balva
Autortiesību bezgalības balva par romānu "Jelgava '94": romāna fragments tika nolasīts Prozas lasījumos 2012 un publicēts žurnālā "Latvju Teksti". 2013. gada sākumā romānu apgāds "Mansards" izdeva grāmatā, tas pieejams arī elektroniskā versijā. 2015. gada
2017
Annual Latvian Literary Award
Balva piešķirta par stāstu krājumu "Tīģeris".
Labākais prozas darbs
2021
"Avīzes Nosaukuma" gada balva "Āža Bafometa pateicības balva par ieguldījumu kultūrā, brīvprātīgā darba veicināšanā un nekaunīgos nosaukumos"
Nikolā Ozano "BIBLIHIGIANSE jeb LEKSIKOGRĀFES IZDZĒŠANA (RĪGA 1941)"
Gada tulkojums
2023
Annual Latvian Literary Award
Labākais prozas darbs
Nominee
2023