Ismet Prcic, author of Shards
Portland-based author Ismet Prcic has endured many changes in fortune over the years. He grew-up in war-torn Bosnia-Herzegovina, and immigrated to the US in the 1990s. After applying to teach English at Clark College, he ended up teaching theater. He wrote his debut novel in English, then oversaw its translation into Bosnian–an experience that left him tired of spending so much time his own manuscript.
His debut novel, Shards, was a New York Times Notable book of the year, and it won an Oregon Book Award (the Ken Kesey Award for Fiction) and the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction. He earned his MFA in writing from the University of California, Irvine, and won a 2010 NEA Award for Fiction.
