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National Book Awards wise up

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 18:40:00 +0000

In a bid to "broaden the reach and impact" of the National Book Awards, its annual prize, the National Book Foundation has announced two key changes to its selection process. These alterations appear to be following the example of Britain's Man Booker Prize, a contest that many regard as more influential in the U.S. than its homegrown counterpart.

The NBAs are awarded in four categories: fiction, nonfiction, poetry and young people's literature. In the past, panels of judges in each category selected a short list of five titles, announcing the candidates in the early fall. The winners of each prize are then announced at a gala banquet and ceremony in November.

On Tuesday, the foundation issued a press release stating that from now on "a 'Long-List' of ten titles in each of the four genres, to be published five weeks before the Finalists Announcement." More significantly, it also announced that the judging panels "will no longer be limited to writers, but now may also include other experts in the field including literary critics, librarians and booksellers." The Booker Prize likewise features both a long and a short list, and its judges are drawn from various walks of literary life, including the occasional import from other media, such as Dan Stevens (who plays Matthew Crawley on "Downton Abbey"), a judge in 2012.

Hilary Mantel lands on Booker Prize shortlist

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 16:13:00 +0000

The shortlist for the prestigious Man Booker Prize is out, and Hilary Mantel is on it, again. Mantel's "Bring Up the Bodies," the sequel to the Tudor trilogy she began with Booker Prize-winning "Wolf Hall," is the favored winner. The Associated Press reports:

Bookmakers immediately made Mantel one of the favorites to win the prize. Betting firm William Hill ranked her at 2/1, behind “Umbrella,” a century-spanning stream of consciousness by Britain’s Will Self.

"Wolf Hall" began as an exploration into the private life of Thomas Cromwell, a member of the working class who became Henry VIII's chief minister. "Bring Up the Bodies, " however, focuses on the downfall of Henry VIII's mistress Anne Boleyn. In a 2011 interview with the Guardian, Mantel talked about how the novel would differ from its prequel:

What makes a book great?

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

What is the purpose of literary prizes and how do we determine the excellence of a book? Those two questions have been cropping up a lot lately, from discussion of the National Book Award in the U.S. to the unfolding kerfuffle over the Booker Prize in the U.K.

Booksellers often say that the Booker has more credibility with American readers than the NBA, citing a track record that includes Yann Martel's "Life of Pi," Hilary Mantel's "Wolf Hall," Arundhati Roy's "The God of Small Things" and A.S. Byatt's "Possession" as titles introduced to an enthusiastic stateside readership during the prize's 43-year history. Chosen by a panel with varied backgrounds (scholars, novelists, critics, booksellers and the occasional broadcaster), the Booker shortlist tends to be a blend of acclaimed and relatively undiscovered works that many Britons (and quite a few Americans) make a habit of reading in its entirety.