Colombian writer Juan Gabriel Vasquez has won the 2011 Alfaguara Spanish literary prize for his novel “El ruido de las cosas al caer” (The Sound of Things Falling).
In a statement Monday, the publishing house describes the book as “dark balance of an age of terror and violence” in the Colombian capital.
The award, one of the most prestigious in the Spanish language, includes a prize ofeuro123,000($175,000).
Alfaguara says 608 works were considered for the prize.
One of Colombia’s most admired authors, Vasquez was born in Bogota in 1973. He lives in the northeastern Spanish city of Barcelona.
His other books include “The Secret History of Costaguana” and “The Informers.”