Anne Carson and Can Xue Lead Odds for 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature

Canadian poet Anne Carson and Chinese writer Can Xue are currently favored to win the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature, with both having 10/1 odds according to Ladbrokes. The announcement for this prestigious award, now valued at 12 million Swedish Krona (approximately £900,000), is scheduled for Thursday.

Anne Carson, 76, is renowned for her innovative writing style that intertwines poetry and prose, often merging contemporary narratives with ancient myths. Her acclaimed 1998 verse novel, *Autobiography of Red*, reinterprets a Greek poem about Heracles and focuses on a queer coming-of-age journey.

Can Xue, whose real name is Deng Xiaohua, is 73 and has been a perennial favorite for several years. She has twice been longlisted for the International Booker Prize for her works including *Love in the New Millennium*, translated by Annelise Finegan Wasmoen, and *I Live in the Slums*, translated by Karen Gernant and Chen Zeping.

Trailing Carson and Can Xue is Japanese author Haruki Murakami, with odds of 14/1. Known for bestseller titles like *Norwegian Wood* and *Kafka on the Shore*, Murakami remains one of the most notable names among potential winners.

Other contenders include Australian writer Gerald Murnane and American novelist Thomas Pynchon, both with odds of 16/1.

Seven authors share the 20/1 odds, including: Margaret Atwood, Cristina Rivera Garza, Enrique Vila-Matas, Jamaica Kincaid, Lídia Jorge, Lyudmila Ulitskaya, and Michel Houellebecq. Atwood, recognized for *The Handmaid’s Tale*, has won numerous prestigious awards like the Booker Prize and the Giller Prize. Rivera Garza earned the Pulitzer Prize in 2024 for her memoir, *Liliana’s Invincible Summer*.

Vila-Matas is noted for his unique blend of fiction and essay, and he was longlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2020 for *Mac and His Problem*.

Jamaica Kincaid, known for her works such as *Annie John* and *A Small Place*, frequently explores themes of family and colonialism, with poet Jackie Kay lauding her profound impact on readers.

Longer odds contenders include Karl Ove Knausgård, Alexis Wright, Colm Tóibín, César Aira, Deborah Levy, Don DeLillo, Emmanuel Carrère, Leila Aboulela, Michael Ondaatje, Mircea Cărtărescu, and Salman Rushdie.

The Nobel Prize winner will be revealed at 12 PM UK time (1 PM CEST) on Thursday. Last year's recipient was Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai, with previous winners including Han Kang, Jon Fosse, Annie Ernaux, and Abdulrazak Gurnah.