There’s more than a little flurry of excitement following the announcement of the longlist for the Bailey’s Women’s Prize for Fiction. It has obviously been a very good year for women’s fiction with some big prize-winners and less obvious titles on the list. I haven’t got round to reading any of them yet (I knew I’d regret that New Year’s Resolution of only reading books I already had at home and not buying any more until my To Be Read pile had diminished) but I do have until the 13th April until the shortlist is announced. I am a big fan of Sarah Waters and have read all of her books (apart from her new one) so it’s great to see her here. The Ali Smith and Emma Healey titles have been scooping up other big literary prizes. I keep hearing good things about “The Bees” and would find it hard to resist a book with a title like “The Life Of A Banana”. Can’t wait to see which ones will make the shortlist.
More information can be found on their website at www.womensprizeforfiction.co.uk
The Longlist
- Rachel Cusk – Outline
- Lissa Evans – Crooked Heart
- Patricia Ferguson – Aren’t We Sisters?
- Xiaolu Guo – I Am China
- Samantha Harvey – Dear Thief
- Emma Healey – Elizabeth is Missing
- Emily St John Mandel – Station Eleven
- Grace McCleen – The Offering
- Sandra Newman – The Country of Ice Cream Star
- Heather O’Neill – The Girl Who Was Saturday Night
- Laline Paull – The Bees
- Marie Phillips – The Table of Less Valued Knights
- Rachel Seiffert – The Walk Home
- Kamila Shamsie – A God in Every Stone
- Ali Smith – How to be Both
- Sara Taylor – The Shore
- Anne Tyler – A Spool of Blue Thread
- Sarah Waters – The Paying Guests
- Jemma Wayne – After Before
- PP Wong – The Life of a Banana
The winner is due to be announced on 3rd June. The winner will receive £30,000 and the “Bessie” trophy.
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