Jonas Hassen Khemiri has written six novels, seven plays, and a collection of plays and short stories. His texts have been translated into more than 35 languages, and his plays are performed worldwide.
His novel One Eye Red (Ett öga rött) received the Borås Tidning Award for Best Literary Debut Novel and became the bestselling paperback in Sweden of any category in 2004. Khemiri’s second novel, Montecore: The Silence of the Tiger, was awarded the prestigious P.O. Enquist Literary Prize, won Swedish Radio’s Award for Best Novel, and was nominated for the August Award. Upon its U.S. publication by Knopf, The New York Times Book Review dubbed the novel “wondrous.” In 2012, following a terrorist bombing in central Stockholm, Khemiri published the powerful short novel I Call My Brothers (Jag ringer mina bröder) to great critical acclaim.
Everything I Don't Remember won the August Prize, Sweden’s highest literary honor. The Father Clause was longlisted for the Pen America Literary Awards and chosen as a finalist for the National Book Award.
In 2013, Khemiri’s open letter to the Swedish Minister of Justice in response to the controversial police project REVA rapidly became one of the most shared articles on social media in Swedish history. The article was translated and published in newspapers around the world, including The New York Times.
Khemiri’s bestselling 2023 novel, The Sisters, was a finalist for the August Prize.
In 2021, Khemiri moved with his family to New York City as a Cullman Fellow. He teaches creative writing at NYU.
Photo Max Burkhalter/Albert Bonniers Förlag
