21st Century Literature discussion

The shortlist has just been announced (I have edited this to add the covers and sort by author surname):

Transit by Rachel Cusk
Hot Milk by Deborah Levy
Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun by Sarah Ladipo Manyika
The Lesser Bohemians by Eimear McBride
Solar Bones by Mike McCormack
Martin John by Anakana Schofield

Hugh wrote: "The shortlist has just been announced:..."

Thanks, Hugh. I wasn't familiar with this British literary prize:
http://www.gold.ac.uk/goldsmiths-prize/

"Fiction at its most novel

"The Goldsmiths Prize was established in 2013 to celebrate the qualities of creative daring associated with the University and to reward fiction that breaks the mould or extends the possibilities of the novel form. The annual prize of £10,000 is awarded to a book that is deemed genuinely novel and which embodies the spirit of invention that characterizes the genre at its best."

"Innovative novels used to suffer from the stigma of ‘difficulty’ but one thing we’ve learned since the Goldsmiths Prize was launched four years ago is what a large and responsive readership they reach. The six books on this year’s shortlist have a wide range of subject matter and idiom but all show the same desire to push boundaries and take risks. Dark areas are explored with a lightness of touch. And serious themes broached (love, sexuality, family, ageing, physical illness, mental distress) with no loss of humour or irony. Narrowed down from an entry of 111 titles, it’s a list the judges arrived at without rancour or compromise, and one that demonstrates the healthy state of British and Irish fiction today." Professor Blake Morrison, Chair of Judges.

Bernardine Evaristo
Erica Wagner
Joanna Walsh (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...)

Good descriptions of the judges here: http://www.gold.ac.uk/goldsmiths-priz...

A Guardian perspective: https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...

Comfortably consistently the best of the British literary prizes, and another very strong shortlist this year.

It has succeeded where the Folio Prize failed, in creating a higher quality alternative to the Booker.

Also worth a read for background http://www.newstatesman.com/2014/09/a...

Thanks Lily and Paul - some very useful background info there...

This is one of the few prize descriptions I've read about that actually has me excited--thanks for sharing and for all the background links!

I also think this looks like an exciting prize and I'm going to have a go at some of the books. Hot Milk already done as part of the Man Booker list. I have to say I really did not like McBride's last book, but maybe this one?

I must admit that saying I enjoyed A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing would be an overstatement - it was pretty harrowing in places, but undoubtedly memorable, and I am glad that I read it. I have heard good things about the new one too. Hot Milk is also the only one of this shortlist I have read, and three of the writers are new to me.

Over on another forum we picked 13 possible shortlistees and got 5 of the 6. Like a Mule... was the only one i had not heard of. I will be reading all of them, hopefully pre the winner being announced.

I am sure Paul won't mind my saying that the forum/group he is referring to is The Mookse and the Gripes, where you will find discussion threads for each of the books on this shortlist.

The winner was announced yesterday (I can't help thinking that was not the best date to choose!) - congratulations to Mike McCormack and Solar Bones.

I loved Like a Mule but I thought Solar Bones was a worthy winner, remarkable work by Mike McCormack