Wednesday 9 April 2008

2008 IMPAC shortlist


The 2008 Impact shortlist is announced. This is a very rich prize voted for by libraries.

The shortlist was selected from a total of 137 novels nominated this year. The Award is worth €100,000 and is the world’s most valuable literary prize for a single work of fiction published in English. The eight shortlisted novels are among 137 nominated by 162 public library systems in 122 cities worldwide.


The Speed of Light – Javier Cercas (Spanish) in translation. Bloomsbury
The Sweet and Simple Kind – Yasmine Gooneraratne (Sri Lankan) Perrera Hussein Publishing House
De Niro’s Game – Rawi Hage (Lebanese / Canadian) House of Anansi Press
Dreams of Speaking – Gail Jones (Australian) Harvill Secker / Vintage
Let It Be Morning – Sayed Kashua (Israeli) in translation. Black Cat / Grove Atlantic
The Attack – Yasmina Khadra (Algerian) in translation. Vintage / Nan A. Talese
The Woman Who Waited – Andrei Makine (Russian) in translation. Sceptre
Winterwood – Patrick McCabe (Irish) Bloomsbury

Read any? Me neither.

The themes of the 2008 shortlisted titles are international and include war, love, terrorism, politics, religion, family and murder, says Deirdre Ellis King, Dublin City Librarian. Nominated by public libraries in Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Ireland, Lebanon, Sri Lanka and the USA, they prove that such a high standard of literature can be read and appreciated by anyone. Literature is not just for academics; everybody in Dublin is entitled access to a Dublin City library card and to any of the libraries, free of charge.

A judging panel of five, chaired by non-voting former Chief Judge of a US Court of Appeals, Hon. Eugene R. Sullivan, will select one winner from the eight novels shortlisted. Other judges are: Helon Habila, Patricia Duncker, Aamer Hussein, Eibhlín Evans and José Luis de Juan.

The winner will be announced by The Lord Mayor, Cllr. Paddy Bourke, Patron of the Award, in City Hall on 12th June 2008.

2 comments:

Karen said...

Where do you find your lovely photographs??

I haven't heard of this award - despite working in a library! Amazingly, I have read one of the bokks...Dreams of Speaking, by Gail Jones. It was a little too, er, experimental for my taste :o)

Emerging Writer said...

Hi Karen,

I use GOogle image or flikr if they're not my own.

experimental I can only take in small amounts; I'm the same with sushi.