As I ~may~ have mentioned, I am on the shadow panel for this year's Young Writer of the Year Award - and today the shortlist has been announced! Here they are:
Kings of the Yukon: An Alaskan River Journey by Adam Weymouth (Particular Books)
Kings of the Yukon is about Adam Weymouth's journey in a canoe along the length of the Yukon River, as he explores the landscape, people, climate, and animals of Alaska. He made the journey alongside the migrating salmon, and considers their plight along with his own. I have always loved good travel writing, especially when it comes together with memoir, and I'm really looking forward to reading this one.
Elmet by Fiona Mozley (John Murray)
Elmet is a novel that explores class, nature, violence, land-ownership, childhood, humanity... a lot of things. The central character is a boy named Daniel whose idyllic existence with 'Daddy and Cathy' in their rural home is changed forever. Their land is threatened and Daniel sees a new side to Daddy as he becomes more and more angry and violent. I didn't know much about this novel before now, but it seems intriguing and I can't wait to get stuck in.
The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar (Harvill Secker)
This novel was very popular when it first came out, and I remember seeing a lot of press and blog reviews, so I'm sure it'll be an enjoyable read. Jonah Hancock, a merchant, becomes famous when one of his crew discovers what appears to be a mermaid. Soon everyone wants to come and marvel at the spectacle, and along the way Jonah meets a courtesan named Angelica Neal... and it all goes from there. It is described as a "spell-binding story of obsession and curiosity" on GoodReads and I'm not surprised that it has been so popular.
The Reading Cure: How Books Restored My Appetite by Laura Freeman (W&N)
I had already had The Reading Cure on my TBR for a while, so I was very pleased to see it on the shortlist, and to be given the opportunity to read it. Laura Freeman suffered from anorexia as a teenager, and this book chronicles how her love of literature kept her going through some of the hardest points of her illness, and inspired her to get better. This is just the sort of memoir I'm sure I will enjoy.
So there they are - four very interesting books. I'm very pleased that two are fiction, and two are non-fiction, as I love reading both, and I think it will be a very interesting conversation when the shadow panel and I have to try and choose our winner. They all look wonderful.
You can follow award news on Twitter via the award's page and with the hashtags #youngwriteraward and #youngwriterawardshadow.
I'd love to hear what you think of the shortlist - have you read any?
