Eight novels, including Winterwood by Irish author Patrick McCabe, have made the shortlist for the 2008 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.
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 Lord Mayor and Patron of the Award, Cllr. Paddy Burke, today officially confirmed the eight novels on this year’s shortlist;
The Speed of Light – Javier Cercas (Spanish) in translation
The Sweet and Simple Kind – Yasmine Gooneraratne (Sri Lankan)
De Niro’s Game – Rawi Hage (Lebanese)
Dreams of Speaking – Gail Jones (Australian)
Let It Be Morning – Sayed Kashua (Israeli) in translation
The Attack – Yasmina Khadra (Algerian) in translation
The Woman Who Waited – Andrei Makine (Russian) in translation
Winterwood – Patrick McCabe (Irish)
‘‘To see Patrick McCabe’s name on the shortlist is a tribute to him and says a lot for the high standard of contemporary Irish literature. Ireland has a reputation for producing some of the world’s richest fiction and this tradition continues to be upheld with the recognition of one of our finest writers today’’
, says Cllr Paddy Bourke, Lord Mayor of Dublin. Winterwood was nominated by both Cork and Dublin City Libraries. Dublin City Public Libraries also nominated a second shortlisted title, The Attack by Yasmina Khadra.
“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.’’
Previous winners of the prestigious award include Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson (2007) and The Master by Colm Tóibín (2006).
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. (The winner will be announced by The Lord Mayor, Cllr. Paddy Bourke, Patron of the Award, in City Hall on 12th June 2008.
The International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award is managed by Dublin City Libraries, on behalf of Dublin City Council. It is sponsored by IMPAC, an international management productivity company with its European headquarters in Dublin.
The Award is presented annually with the objective of promoting excellence in world literature. It is open to novels written in any language and by authors of any nationality, provided the work has been published in English or English translation in the specified time period as outlined in the rules and conditions for the year. Nominations are submitted by library systems in major cities throughout the world.
All the novels nominated can be viewed on www.impacdublinaward.ie
Recent previous winners of the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award include:
Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson (2007) and The Master by Colm Tóibín (2006)