The Orange Prize, 2008
It's that time of year again. The Orange Prize longlist was announced this morning, much to my excitement. My first and dominant response to it is bewilderment. Over half the books and authors are entirely new to me, and there seem to be some notable omissions. Where is Nicola Barker's Darkmans? Or AL Kennedy's Day? Where is Jeanette Winterson's The Stone Gods? I find it difficult to rationalise a list of 2008's best novels by women that doesn't include them. Anne Enright's The Gathering sticks out like a sore-thumb of literaryness. And I wonder, uncharitably, whether they were simply too much for some of the judges. I also wonder whether this could be the year that I fall out with the Orange Prize...
Anita Amirrezvani The Blood of Flowers
Stella Duffy The Room of Lost Things
Jennifer Egan The Keep
Anne Enright The Gathering
Linda Grant The Clothes on Their Backs
Tessa Hadley The Master Bedroom
Nancy Huston Fault Lines
Gail Jones Sorry
Sadie Jones The Outcast
Lauren Liebenberg The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam
Charlotte Mendelson When We Were Bad
Deborah Moggach In The Dark
Anita Nair Mistress
Heather O'Neill Lullabies for Little Criminals
Elif Shafak The Bastard of Istanbul
Dalia Sofer The Septembers of Shiraz
Scarlett Thomas The End of Mr Y
Carol Topolski Monster Love
Rose Tremain The Road Home
Patricia Wood Lottery
More indepth coverage later. In the meantime, can you think of other notable omissions?
~~Victoria~~
Oh, and I just remembered: Ali Smith's 'Girl Meets Boy' and Pat Barker's 'Life Class' were also eligible. Admittedly, I haven't read the latter but I hold Barker in very high esteem generally.
Posted by: Victoria | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 09:55 AM
On the other hand, I'm really glad to see Rose Tremain's name there. I loved 'The Road Home' and think she is a great writer, at the height of her powers, and well overdue for a big prize.
Posted by: Sarah Bower | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 10:32 AM
I just received an email from Niall reminding me that Sarah Hall's 'The Carhullan Army' has also been omitted. For shame! Orange judges, for shame!
Posted by: Victoria | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 11:36 AM
Hmm. Well, without doing any research, I can say that there are at least four books on there that I'd like to read (Thomas, Shafak, Mendelson, Sofer). Will probably give Enright a try if she makes the shortlist. I wasn't wild about the one Tremain I have read (_Music and Silence_), but would be happy to give her writing another go.
Curses, had promised myself I'd only do one award shortlist this year... ;-)
Ooh, is that Gail Jones as in _Dreams of Speaking_?
Posted by: Nic | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 11:46 AM
It *is* the infamous Gail Jones. I can't wait to try it...
Posted by: Victoria | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 11:55 AM
I was wondering when this list was going to be announced. I'm not really up on all the current British fiction unless I see it on other blogs, and I'm not sure if this is fiction published in the previous year (I'm guessing it must be only 2007?)? I just read Rosalind Belben's Our Horses in Egypt and thought it would be a wonderful book to make one of these prize lists. I thought maybe The Journal of Dora Damage might also make it (or was it published earlier?). I've only heard of five of these books, but I guess that means I'll have lots to check out and perhaps discover something new. Do you read the entire longlist or wait until they announce the shortlist? I always find this process so interesting.
Posted by: Danielle | Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 02:18 PM
Nic, the only one I read is The Bastard of Istanbul, which is quite good, but could've been better if... (there's a review of it somewhere on my blog, which goes into the if-part). Like you, I want to read Charlotte Mendelson's book and Dalia Sofer.
I will read The Gathering some time this year for one of my Challenges. I am a bit apprehensive about taking it up, though. It is not really my thing, and I have heard too many mixed reviews about the book. Oh well, reading outside one's comfort zone once in a while can only be good...
Posted by: Myrthe | Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 09:33 AM
Guardian round-up of the various bits of OP discussion at http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/03/the_orange_controversy_longlis.html . There's even a piece (not online) in today's Private Eye.
Posted by: Graham | Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 06:57 PM
Two notable ommissions spring to mind - both by previous winners of the prize: Ann Patchett's Run and Valerie Martin's Trespass.
Not sorry to see A L Kennedy omitted - in fact, kudos to the judges here. Awful book. cf
http://lizzysiddal.wordpress.com/2007/06/26/a-l-kennedy-day/
Posted by: Lizzy Siddal | Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 07:51 PM