Doris Lessing, author of dozens of works from short stories to science fiction, including the classic The Golden Notebook, won the Nobel Prize for literature Oct. 11. She was praised by the judges for her "skepticism, fire and visionary power."

Lessing, 11 days short of her 88th birthday, is the oldest choice ever for a prize that usually goes to writers in their 50s and 60s.

The Swedish Academy's decision stunned Nobel watchers, as Lessing has received little attention in recent years.

The academy was not able to reach Lessing before announcing the prize in Stockholm, but reporters waiting outside her home on a leafy North London street told her she had won as she pulled up in a black cab, two hours later.

"Oh Christ, I couldn't care less," she said. "This has been going on for 30 years."