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January 25, 2006
2006 Commonwealth Writers' Prize - Regional Shortlists
The Regional Shortlists for the 2006 Commonwealth Writers' Prize have been announced. Prizes are awarded for Best Book and Best First Book in each of the four Commonwealth Regions: Africa, Canada and Caribbean, Eurasia (Europe and South Asia), South East Asia and South Pacific. After the regional prizes are decided, overall Commonwealth winners of each category are then announced.
The list of works is quite long and should be up on the website soon. In the meantime, the following books have been shortlisted in the South East Asia and South Pacific region:
Best Book
Sandstone by Stephen Lacey
Grace by Robert Drewe
Surrender by Sonya Hartnett
March by Geraldine Brooks
Blindsight by Maurice Gee
The Marsh Birds by Eva Sallis
The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers by Delia Falconer
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
The Ballad of Desmond Kale by Roger McDonald
Best First Book
Affection by Ian Townsend
Winter Journey by Diane Armstrong
The Grasshopper Shoe by Carolyn Carolyn
An Accidental Terrorist by Steven Lang
The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw
Road Story by Julienne Van Loon
Everyday Rules for Scientific Living by Carrie Tiffany
The Patron Saint of Eels by Gregory Day
Let Me Sing You Gentle Songs by Linda Olsson
A Red Silk Sea by Gillian Ransfead
It's interesting to note that nomination in a particular region is based on citizenship, so Slow Man by J.M. Coetzee appears on the African shortlist.
The regional winners will be announced on February 6th, and overall winners on March 14th.
[Thanks to Wendy James for the heads-up on this.]
Posted by larrikin at January 25, 2006 02:47 PM
Comments
Wendy James is a legend.
Sounds like there are great books for the region this year.
I think Grace should win in the Best Book and Carrie Tiffany's Everymans Rules for Scientific Living should win the best first book. I would put the Book Thief and the Lost Thoughts of Soldiers in my top 3.
Posted by: Bronwyn G at January 27, 2006 02:56 PM
That Best Book shortlist is amazingly strong. However to choose among the Hartnett, the Brooks and the Falconer, with Drewe and Sallis closely behind (IMO of course)? Haven't read the others, but there have been rave reviews for the Roger McDonald as well.
Given that the rules of the Miles Franklin Award ('must show Australian life in any of its phases') knock out both Falconer and Brooks, both of whose books are excusively about 19th century North America, you've got to hope that they'll clean up in the other prizes that don't make that stipulation.
Posted by: Kerryn Goldsworthy at January 30, 2006 12:49 AM
Lucy Sussex was extolling the virtues of Affection and The Patron Saint of Eels to me the other day. And let's not forget that Tash Aw was longlisted for last year's Booker. It does seem a very strong list.
Posted by: Perry Middlemiss at January 30, 2006 05:08 PM
I'm really surprised that Kate Grenville's new novel didn't make the list - a worthy contender, surely?
(But that omission makes me feel a bit better about my own absence :(
Posted by: Wendy James at January 31, 2006 08:26 AM
"Wendy James is a legend"
Hmmm. Think you must have me confused with that other Wendy James, Bronwyn: she of Transvision Vamp fame. Or maybe Wendy James the anthropologist. I think there might be a porn star, too....
Or maybe I'm all of them. Hehe. Wouldn't I be popular at literary festivals!
Posted by: Wendy James at January 31, 2006 03:40 PM