Another Shortlist or Two

The shortlist for other the Orange Broadband Prize, that for new writers has been announced, and it is a very short shortlist with just three titles on it this time:

Clare Allan- Poppy Shakespeare
Karen Connelly- The Lizard Cage
Roopa Farooki - Bitter Sweets

You can find out more about the titles and read an extract here.

I am cheering though at seeing Canadian author Karen Connelly's name on the list! In a sense she isn't a new "writer" as she has had poetry and non-fiction published previously, although The Lizard Cage is her first novel.

I first came across her work when I happened upon (in Guardian Pharmacy, in the days when it was the only place that sold books in Bangsar Baru!) Touch the Dragon, a collection of pieces which began life as journal entries and letters written when she spent a year living in Thailand when she was 17. I was blown away by the beauty of the images she captured and her power of observation, and when I lent the book to a "friend" who didn't return it, I had to hunt for another copy at abebooks! If you want an excellent example of a writer's journal, do try to get hold of a copy.

The 2007 shortlist for Australia's premier prize for fiction, The Miles Franklin Literary Award has also been announced and is also nicely short.

Deborah Robertson- Careless
Alexis Wright- Carpentaria
Gail Jones - Dreams Of Speaking
Peter Carey - Theft : A Love Story

Am rooting for Carey of course, though that hardly seems fair when I haven't read the others on the list yet! Anyway, links to further information about all theses titles can be found in the official website.

Postscript

The other titles nominated for the miles franklin award do sound very interesting - do take a look at these articles in the Age and the Australian.