Do you know your Booker from your Non Booker? That a Costa prize might not be referring to a coffee? No? Then THIS is the article for you.
Let’s break it down
It feels like you can’t pick up a book sometimes without it having won some kind of award. But with so many around what do they actually mean and should you even be bothered? We review the top awards, indicating what type of books they cover and whether you may or may not like them.
Highbrow dahling
So let’s start with the biggest, the OSCARS if you like of book reading. The Booker Prize (formerly the Man Booker) was launched in 1969 to promote the finest works in fiction. Its aim was to ‘increase the reading of quality fiction and to attract the intelligent general audience’. There is a Long List, a Short List and judges from a range of disciplines. It is awarded to the book not the author although the latter does receive £50,000 should their book claim the title. It made headlines last year when Margaret Atwood jointly won with Bernadine Evaristo. The former being the oldest ever winner (whose book had yet to be published when originally listed) the latter the first black female winner. Previous winners include The Remains of the Day and The English Patient. Sales inevitably increase of any book lucky enough to make the cut and the short list for 2020 has just been announced. There is also an international booker for translations or you could keep an eye out for the American equivalent, The Pulitzer Prize.
Not the Booker
In contrast the ‘Not The Booker Prize’ was launched in 2009 by Sam Jordison of the Guardian to allow the public a say in who wins. Similar in style to the Booker, a Long List is announced before a Short List of 6 books is settled on. This years list includes Emma Donoghues‘s Akin, Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell and The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare. The books tend to be more main stream popular than the Booker although Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other is still kicking the ass of every book out there at the moment.
Costa, not coffee
Even more mainstream is the Costa Awards that has been running for the last 50 odd years. Five categories (first novel, novel, biography, poetry and children’s book) make it one of the most well represented awards. With one of the individual prize winners being selected for Book of the Year. The Volunteer, a non fiction offering by Jack Fairweather won last year. This years Short List will be announced in November with the winner receiving a £30,000 check in January. Previous winners include Philip Pullman for the Amber Spyglass, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime and Behind the Scenes at the Museum.
Specific Genre
Those are the ‘main’ book prizes and I say that loosely as others would argue differently. Yet if it’s a specific genre you love then there is a probably an award for you. Think The CWA Daggers or Theakston’s Old Peculiar for crime writing. The Wainwright Prize for nature, the Baillie Gifford for non-fiction. You could plump for women’s fiction, political writing, Scottish writing, young authors the list is endless!
A bit confused? There is always The National Book Awards (affectionally known as the NIBBIES) which celebrates commercial successes of authors, publishes and bookshops. Current winner Queenie, and last years winner Normal People give you an idea of the style – you’re going to get a popular, well read book.
Good old word of mouth
Whilst an award never harms sales, there really is no substitute for good old word of mouth. If everyone you know has read it and loved it then take the hint. I couldn’t tell you whether some of the books I have loved most over the years ever won an award. I’ve never rushed out to buy a book that has made it to a shortlist. Although I am going to buy Hamnet. Only because so many people are telling me it’s amazing.
