The Swedish award is given annually. The nominees are selected by a group of literary critics, after which a jury of radio listeners discusses the works during radio broadcasts and then chooses a winner. Since its release, Westö’s latest novel has been nominated for three other Nordic literary awards.
Westö is also the winner of the 2006 Finlandia Prize for Literature for his novel in Swedish: Där vi en gång gått (“Where We Once Went”), a depiction of the life of Helsinki residents from the beginning of the 20th century until 1938 - the eve of the Winter War. Westö, born in 1961, began writing poetry and soon moved on to short stories and finally to novels. Westö was awarded the City of Helsinki Cultural Prize in 2013, with the jury stating that Westö provided novel perspectives on the history of Finland and what it means to be a native of Helsinki.