Half of these books won’t even be finalists for the Booker Prize. We’ll find out September 9 which ones when the “shortist” is announced: The White Tiger, by Aravind AdigaGirl in a Blue Dress, by Gaynor ArnoldThe Secret Scripture, by Sebastian BarryFrom A to X, by John BergerThe Lost Dog, by Michelle de KretserSea of Poppies, by Amitav GhoshThe Clothes on Their Backs, by Linda GrantA Case of Exploding Mangoes, by Mohammed HanifThe Northern Clemency, by Philip HensherNetherland, by Joseph O’Neill The Enchantress of Florence, by Salman RushdieChild 44, by Tom Rob SmithA Fraction of the Whole, by Steve Toltz
Awards
BN Boosts The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Barnes & Noble has picked Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows’ novel, which goes on sale tomorrow, as their 10th BN Recommends selection. “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, compiled as a series of letters, Chief merchandising officer Jaime Carey says it “radiates love for the written word in every way,” adding: “drawn together by their love of books and affection for each other, the unforgettable characters of this story tell a moving tale of endurance and friendship.”
New SFWA Grand Master
Harry Harrison,creator of The Stainless Steel Rat and author of the novel that inspired the movie Soylent Green, will be honored as the next (and twenty-sixth) Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America during their 2009 Nebula Award ceremony. Harrison published his first science fiction story, ‘Rock Diver,’ in the August 1951 issue of Worlds Beyond, and went on to produce more than 62 novels, eight short fiction collections, six non-fiction books and numerous short stories. His more recent works include best-selling alternate world trilogies West of Eden and Stars and Stripes Forever!
Summerscale Wins Johnson prize
Kate Summerscale’s The Suspicions Of Mr Whicher: Or The Murder At Road Hill House won the UK’s £30,000 Samuel Johnson prize for nonfiction. The chair of judges Rosie Boycott declared it a “page-turning yarn” and said “Summerscale has brilliantly merged scrupulous archival research with vivid storytelling that reads with the pace of a Victorian thriller. The book is a rare work of non-fiction that mimics the suspense genre and leaves one gripped until the final paragraph.” Walker is the US publisher for the book.BBC
Awards: Thriller Winners
On Friday night the International Thriller Writers (ITW) presented their Thriller Awards: Best NovelThe Ghost, by Robert Harris Best First NovelHeart-Shaped Box, by Joe Hill Best Paperback OriginalThe Midnight Road, by Tom Piccirilli
Awards for Rushdie and Rose-Innes
Salman Rushie’s MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN won the Best of the Booker designation–for the second time–as part of the prize’s 40th anniversary celebration. (He won a similar designation, the Booker of Bookers, after the 25 years of the prize.) South African writer Henrietta Rose-Innes won the Caine Prize for African writing for her story, POISON is a piece about environmental disaster in Cape Town.Booker/GuardianBBC/Caine