Nobel Prize for literature awarded

Bob Dylan was a 10-1 shot to win the Nobel prize for literature, according to bookmaker Ladbrokes. NEW: Mo recently won China's prestigious Mao Dun literary award NEW: His novel "Frog" explored the traditional Chinese preference for boys over girls NEW: Canadian Alice Munro and folk singer Bob Dylan had been mentioned as front-runners (CNN) -- Mo Yan of China won the Nobel Prize in literature, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced Thursday. His novel "Frog" poignantly explored the traditional Chinese preference for boys over girls, a preference that stems from the perception that boys are more able to provide for the family and carry on the family line. That tendency has fed the practice of aborting female fetuses or abandoning infant girls, which continues today in rural parts of China. "Frog" focused on a midwife in rural China and her experiences with forced abortions and sterilizations. Mo recently won China's prestigious Mao Dun literary award -- a potential indication that China has become more open to talking about the issue. Favorites for this year's award included American folk singer Bob Dylan, Canadian author Alice Munro, American novelist Philip Roth and Japanese author Haruki Murakami. Murakami and Dylan were also favorites among bookies last year, but Swedish poet Tomas Transtromer won the million-dollar prize. CNN's Ben Brumfield contributed to this report.