Why Doris Lessing Won the Nobel Prize for Literature

Posted on October 18, 2007

Doris Lessing's winning the Nobel Prize for Literature thrilled many people -- other than Harold Bloom, of course -- especially science fiction fans who called it a great victory for the genre. In this short video, Horace Engdahl reveals how Doris Lessing's "second peak," in which she created groundbreaking works about women and about male-female relationships, was a major factor in awarding her the Literature Prize. He also nearly slips and reveals that she has been considered before for the prize. He caught himself before he gave away the inner secrets of the committee, unfortunately.

For those unfamiliar with Lessing, Engdahl says to start with her first book, The Grass is Singing.