Never Ending TBR discussion

Honoring the achievements of the founding father of the historical novel, the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the world. For the purpose of the award, historical fiction is defined as being that where the main events take place more than 60 years ago, i.e. outside of any mature personal experience of the author. Previous shortlisted and winning books can be reviewed at Walter Scott Prize.

This year's long list includes:

Hinton by Mark Blacklock
The Tolstoy Estate by Steven Conte
The Year Without Summer by Guinevere Glasfurd
A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville
Mr Beethoven by Paul Griffiths
Afterlives by Abdulrazak Gurnah
A Treacherous Country by K.M. Kruimink
The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
Islands of Mercy by Rose Tremain
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams

This is a challenge to read the nominees. Rank your favorites against the judges.

The short list has been announced:

The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
The Tolstoy Estate by Steven Conte

The short list has three Australian authors. I still want to read Mr Beethoven by Paul Griffiths even though it didn't make the short list.

I dont know why these are so hard to find for me. My library has only a few

I was having the same problem. It could be that American libraries don't carry many Australian authors' books. I am having more luck with previous year nominees shown in the link above.

Kathy wrote: "I was having the same problem. It could be that American libraries don't carry many Australian authors' books. I am having more luck with previous year nominees shown in the link above."

Thanks! I may check those out instead.

5* for Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell - 5/12/2021

2021 Winner is The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel.

Not sure how I feel about the third book in a trilogy being named winner. Though I really do love Mantel’s writing.

Hinton by Mark Blacklock
The Tolstoy Estate by Steven Conte
The Year Without Summer by Guinevere Glasfurd
A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville - borrowbox
Mr Beethoven by Paul Griffiths
Afterlives by Abdulrazak Gurnah
A Treacherous Country by K.M. Kruimink
The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel -
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
Islands of Mercy by Rose Tremain 3* 9/5
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams 11/2 4*

Honoring the achievements of the founding father of the historical novel, the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the world. For the purpose of the award, historical fiction is defined as being that where the main events take place more than 60 years ago, i.e. outside of any mature personal experience of the author. Previous shortlisted and winning books can be reviewed at Walter Scott Prize.

The 2022 Long List:

Blue Postcards by Douglas Bruton
Snow Country by Sebastian Faulks
Rose Nicolson by Andrew Greig
Mrs England by Stacey Halls
The Ballad of Lord Edward and Citizen Small by Neil Jordan
The Sunken Road by Ciaran McMenamin
The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed
News of the Dead by James Robertson
China Room by Sunjeev Sahota
Fortune by Amanda Smyth
Learwife by J.R. Thorp
The Magician by Colm Tóibín
Still Life by Sarah Winman

This is a challenge to read the nominees. Rank your favorites against the judges.

Read:

The Magician by Colm Tóibín. 4 stars. The life and times of the famous writer, Thomas Mann. Read 5/3/22.

The short list has been announced:

Fortune by Amanda Smyth
Rose Nicolson by Andrew Greig
The Magician by Colm Tóibín
News of the Dead by James Robertson

AND THE WINNER IS: (dramatic drum roll) News of the Dead by James Robertson!!!

Honoring the achievements of the founding father of the historical novel, the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the world. For the purpose of the award, historical fiction is defined as being that where the main events take place more than 60 years ago, i.e. outside of any mature personal experience of the author. Previous shortlisted and winning books can be reviewed at Walter Scott Prize.

The 2023 long list includes:

The Romantic by William Boyd
These Days by Lucy Caldwell
My Name Is Yip by Paddy Crewe
The Geometer Lobachevsky by Adrian Duncan
Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris
The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph
The Chosen: who pays the price of a writer's fame? by Elizabeth Lowry
The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley by Sean Lusk
The Sun Walks Down by Fiona McFarlane
Ancestry by Simon Mawer
I Am Not Your Eve by Devika Ponnambalam
The Settlement by Jock Serong

This is a challenge to read the nominees. Rank your favorites against the judges.

The short list has been announced:

These Days by Lucy Caldwell
The Geometer Lobachevsky by Adrian Duncan
Act of Oblivion by Robert Harris
The Chosen: who pays the price of a writer's fame? by Elizabeth Lowry
The Sun Walks Down by Fiona McFarlane
Ancestry by Simon Mawer
I Am Not Your Eve by Devika Ponnambalam

Out of the 12 longlisted, 7 were shortlisted. Either excessive amount on shortlist or these are really good books.