Champagne Taittinger, the preserves of the independently minded drinker, was once again the preferred Champagne sponsor of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize - a partnership between Arts Council England and the Independent newspaper.

The �10,000 prize, which is split equally between author and translator, was awarded to the Norwegian author Per Petterson and to translator Anne Born for the novel Out Stealing Horses at a special Champagne Taittinger reception, held at the National Portrait Gallery on Tuesday night. Both winners also received a magnum of Champagne Taittinger Prestige Ros�.

The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize honours an outstanding work of fiction written by a living author, which has been translated into English from any language and published in the UK in the previous twelve months.

Already highly awarded in his home country, Per Petterson�s fifth novel Out Stealing Horses has sold in excess of 140,000 copies in Norway - to a population of only 4.5 million - and the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize further cements his reputation as one of Norway�s leading literary figures.

Speaking of his admiration for Out Stealing Horses, the novelist and Independent Foreign Fiction Prize judge Paul Bailey, who presented the award, said how the novel had �delighted and captivated the judging panel, who were unanimous in their praise.� And of Anne Born�s translation, he added �a loving translation of a lovely book.�

Published in the UK by Harvill Secker in November 2005, Out Stealing Horses is the eleventh novel to find international acclaim since the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was conceived in 1991.

Boyd Tonkin, Literary Editor of the Independent and one of the judges, said of this year�s competition �This year�s shortlist for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize includes novels of tremendous strength and scope from some of the most distinguished writers of fiction at work today. Any book that prevails in such a field would have to be a truly remarkable winner. Per Petterson�s Out Stealing Horses is such a work.�

The novel recreates the summer of 1948 in the mind of 67 year-old Trond, a lonely widower living out his autumn years in his forest home near the Swedish boarder. His memories reveal his earlier coming-of-age as a fifteen year-old who discovers secrets about his parents, his friends, and himself that shape the future of his life.

Tonkin describes the book as �A novel of consistent beauty, subtlety and wisdom, but one that creeps up on the reader and gets unforgettably under your skin. A lyrical coming-of-age tale that deepens into a dramatic meditation on the end of childhood, the choice of a destiny, the gains and losses of age, and the burdens of freedom. Translated with unfailing grace and flair by Anne Born, Out Stealing Horses will stay with you like a friend, a guide and a witness.�

Notes to the Editor

Out Stealing Horses was short-listed with five other novels from the eighty entered in this year�s competition. The five runners up were:

� Fatelessness by Imre Kert�sz and translated from the Hungarian by Tim Wilkinson, published by Harvill. � Mercedes-Benz by Pawel Huelle and translated from the Polish by Antonia Lloyd-Jones, published by Serpent�s Tail. � The Ministry of Pain by Dubravka Ugresic and translated from the Croatian by Michael Henry Heim, published by Saqi. � The Door by Magda Szab� and translated from the Hungarian by Len Rix, published by Harvill Secker. � The Blinding Absence of Light by Tahar Ben Jelloun and translated from the French by Linda Coverdale, published by Penguin

The judging panel for this year�s award comprised of Literary Editor of the Independent Boyd Tonkin, Dr Margaret Busby OBE, author Paul Bailey, writer and translator Maureen Freely, and Arts Council England Literary Officer Kate Griffin.

Champagne Taittinger has been the official Champagne sponsor of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize since 2001.

Photograph shows novelist Per Petterson, right, with translator Anne Born

For information on Champagne Taittinger please contact Ian Palmer at R&R Teamwork on Tel. 020 7384 1333 ian@randr.co.uk

For Media contact information and photography regarding the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize please contact Sophie Rochester or Eleanor Johnsey at Colman Getty PR on Tel. 020 7631 2666 or sophie@colmangettypr.co.uk or eleanor@colmangettypr.co.uk

For media contact regarding Arts Council England please contact Amy Edmunds on Tel. 020 7973 5185 amy.Edmunds@artscouncil.org.uk