The Rathbones Folio Prize

[Paul]

Shortlist is out (is there some new rule about all prizes being announced in the first week of April?)

Novels:
Milkman by Anna Burns
Ordinary People by Diana Evans
There, There by Tommy Orange
Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile by Alice Jolly

Novellas:
West by Carys Davies

Non-fiction
Can You Tolerate This? By Ashleigh Young
The Crossway by Guy Stagg

Poetry:
The Perseverance by Raymond Antrobus

[Paul]

So Milkman marches on but Murmur and Normal People are out.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Great for Milkman and There, There deserves a prize. Great for our fellow twin to see Diana progressing

[Robert]

Excellent more milkman exposure

[Antonomasia, Admin only]

Winner announced: The Perseverance by Raymond Antrobus

https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...

Antrobus also won the Ted Hughes award (a poetry prize) earlier this year: https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...

[Antonomasia, Admin only]

Would like to read this. I thought the lines about Lego quoted in that first article were pretty amazing, and the whole poem is wonderful. It's both specifically about an experience a lot of people don't think about, and incredibly expansive, ranging between many varied ideas and references:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poet...

[Paul]

2020 longlist:

Guest House for Young Widows by Azadeh Moaveni

The Topeka School by Ben Lerner

Vertigo & Ghost by Fiona Benson

Victory by James Lasdun

On Chapel Sands by Laura Cumming

Constellations by Sinéad Gleeson

Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli

Grand Union by Zadie Smith

[Paul]

I loved Last Children Archive but didn't rate Grand Union at all.

I've heard great things about Constellations and On Chapel Sands has already featured in other prizes.

Ben Lerner is on my 'authors I'll never read again' list' (from another thread)

Not familiar with other 3

[Sam]

Guest House had problems, IMO.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Did you mean to post that on Trip Advisor :-)

[WndyJW]

I read On Chapel Sands with the title Five Days Gone: the Mystery of my Mother's Disappearance as a Child. It was very good. I wouldn't put it in the same category as Lost Children Archive though.

[MisterHobgoblin]

I have read two of these: Topeka School and Lost Children Archive. Neither did anything for me.

[Paul]

This will prompt me (post MBI) to get Constellations. Was probably the most recommended book in end of year “best of 2019” lists that I noticed last year (from the sort of people who would generally recommend Roc/Goldsmiths type of books)

[Sam]

Gumble's Yard wrote: "Did you mean to post that on Trip Advisor :-)"

Gumble's Yard wrote: "Did you mean to post that on Trip Advisor :-)"

I won't make a return trip.

[Lia]

The Topeka Fools

“ It’s not a book set in Kansas, but against it. It is not a book that a Kansan would want to read, it is a book for New Yorkers who want to think they understand the red states. ”

[Paul]

Win for Lost Children Archive - great choice

[Paul]

https://twitter.com/RCWLitAgency/stat...

[Paul]

A very poignant acceptance speech

[Antonomasia, Admin only]

That's lovely. (And also succinct.)

[WndyJW]

Wow, that was powerful and perfectly stated.

[LindaJ^]

Indeed a great choice and her acceptance was thoughtful (and to repeat the rest of you), powerful, poignant, and perfect for the moment.

[Paul]

2021 judges announced - TS Eliot Prize-winning poet Roger Robinson, Irish writer Sinead Gleeson and novelist Jon McGregor - an impressive line up (well in terms of their literary output anyway)

[Hugh, Active moderator]

This year's longlist has been announced here:

https://www.rathbonesfolioprize.com/

These are the books:
Just Us – Claudia Rankine (Allen Lane)
Indelicacy – Amina Cain (Daunt Books)
The Appointment – Katharina Volckmer (Fitzcarraldo Editions)
As You Were – Elaine Feeney (Harvill Secker)
The Geez – Nii Ayikwei Parkes (Peepal Tree Press)
The Mermaid of Black Conch – Monique Roffey (Peepal Tree Press)
Poor – Caleb Femi (Penguin)
OK, Let's Do Your Stupid Idea – Patrick Freyne (Penguin Ireland)
The Actual - Inua Ellams (Penned In The Margins)
Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart (Picador)
My Darling from the Lions – Rachel Long (Picador)
English Pastoral – James Rebanks (Allen Lane)
The Pink Line: Journeys Across the World's Queer Frontiers – Mark Gevisser (Profile Books)
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado (Serpent's Tail)
Strangers – Rebecca Tamás (Makina Books)
RENDANG – Will Harris (Granta)
Entangled Life – Merlin Sheldrake (The Bodley Head)
handiwork – Sara Baume (Tramp Press)
A Ghost In The Throat – Doireann Ní Ghríofa (Tramp Press)
How Much of These Hills Is Gold – C. Pam Zhang (Virago)

[Paul]

Two books from Peepal Tree Press - that is impressive. And another award nomination for Mermaid of Black Conch.

Great to see The Appointment there as well, I was impressed by that.

[Paul]

I had missed that Tramp Press also had two books on the list.

And last year they published ... two books.

100% strike rate!

And Handiwork (only one I’ve read) is very worth its place.

[Hugh, Active moderator]

I was very pleased to see handiwork on the list - one of my favourite books of 2020. The only others that I have read are Mermaid and the two from the Booker list.

[Neil]

Another fan of handiwork here. Not that keen on The Appointment though.

[Sam]

Exceptional nonfiction on the list.

[Hugh, Active moderator]

This year's shortlist is out:
Indelicacy
Poor
handiwork
My Darling from the Lions
In the Dreamhouse
A Ghost in the Throat
The Mermaid of Black Conch
As you were

[Paul]

Nice to see 2 RoC books - and two from Tramp Press.

[Marc]

I just saw that In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado has won the 2021 prize!

Convenient for me, since that's the only book on the longlist that I've read. Big fan of Machado ever since I stumbled upon her short story, "The Husband Stitch".

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Rather unfortunate story about the 2020 Prize - the prize was a victim of scammers

https://www.theguardian.com/books/202...

[Bartleby]

Do you know when the 2022 Longlist will be announced? I can't seem to find it anywhere...

[Paul]

No I can’t see anything either. Although I do know the prize is progressing towards a longlist.

[Bartleby]

Paul wrote: "No I can’t see anything either. Although I do know the prize is progressing towards a longlist."

Thanks, Paul :)

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

The longlist on this prize is always a little odd

It has already been announced in December that the shortlist will be on 9th February and the winner announcement on 23rd March. But there was no reference to a longlist date.

I think the same may have happened in previous years - the longlist seems to just appear and time is running short - I am guessing it will be Wednesday but that leaves two weeks only. last year I think there was a 3 week gap.

And if you read the prize rules (which are interesting in themselves) there is again no reference to a longlist at all in the official timetable just to the month for the initial nominations by the academy of 60 books (see the rules for how this works), the shortlist announcement and the winner announcement

https://www.rathbonesfolioprize.com/w...

[Sam]

I thought was today and was looking as well. A few of the prizes have been a bit chaotic.

[WndyJW]

Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer wrote: "Rather unfortunate story about the 2020 Prize - the prize was a victim of scammers

https://www.theguardian.com/books/202......"

I read about this when it happened. I mentioned it here (clearly, you aren’t hanging on my every word, GY) and that I read it right after our cyber security training at work. I’m glad Luiselli got her prize money anyway. I now double check any email I’m not expecting even if it appears to be from our IT dept.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Wendy I posted that article on the day it was published in April 2021 - are you getting confused on the dates of posts.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Pretty well everything Folio prize wise happens on a Wednesday as far as I can see.

[WndyJW]

Ha! I did think it was posted today.

[Paul]

Ignore my posts! I was talking about the 60-80 books the judges choose from - that I do know has been chosen (obviously really given shortlist is due soon!).

[Paul]

This is a very confusing prize hence the confused posts!

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

As can be seen from the early threads on this post this is a little of a prize in search of a purpose and identity

As an example it was originally set up very explicitly because the Booker was becoming too much about popular literature (after the infamous Stella Rimmington year) and yet in 2 of the last 3 years its longlist has had both the Booker winner and the Costa Prize winner (a prize which sets out to identify enjoyable books)

I think the easiest way to think of it is that it is like going through those Book of the Year features by famous writers in things like New Statesmen and Spectator and Guardian - picking any book mentioned more than once and then getting a small group of writers to read them all and award a longlist (possibly), shortlist and winner.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

Bartleby wrote: "Do you know when the 2022 Longlist will be announced? I can't seem to find it anywhere..."

So looks like what is going to happen this year is a little unusual - the shortlist will be announced on 9 February (and the longlist will be revealed on the same day)

From website (which I think was updated today)

Wednesday 9th February

Shortlist Announcement, along with Longlist reveal

Wednesday 2nd March, 9th March, 15th March

We’re excited to be partnering with 5 x 15 for a series of very special Rathbones Sessions throughout March

Wednesday 23rd March

Winner announced in live ceremony at the British Library

[Sam]

I can't get past my tunnel vision, thinking the reason for progressive revealing is to gain publicity and sell more books. What would be the beneficial purpose of witholding the longlist?

[Paul]

There is another prize that does this. Don’t remember which.

[David]

The Pulitzer does a version of this, revealing the shortlist at the time of the winner announcement.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I know from when I was involved in the RoC (Paul has now taken over involvement) that it was very difficult if not impossible to get press coverage for longlist announcments. Very few prizes manage it - probably only Women's Prize and Booker Prizes in the UK and even there, outside this group, most interest cuts in at the shortlist stage

What will be interesting for me is if they list the full list

The prize is incredibly similar to the Dublin Literary Prize in having a list of around 80 most of which here - all of which for the Dublin Prize - is chosen by nominations (here by writers in the Prize Academy, Dublin by international libraries). So there is some sense in following Dublin Prize and just listing all nominated books and calling that the longlist.

Of of course they can just stick to an intermediate longlist of say 20

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

It also puts less pressure on judges to reach a decision and buys them some more time. As I said earlier in the thread the idea of a longlist has always sat uneasily with the rules (and often practices) of this prize in its limited history - so the longlist has never been a big thing (I can find very few articles at all on the Folio longlist last year - not even from the prize itself).