Homes wins 2013 Women’s Prize for Fiction

6 June 2013 Books+Publishing

American author A M Homes has won the 2013 Women’s Prize for Fiction for her novel May We Be Forgiven (Granta).

Homes, the author of six novels, two collections of short stories, a memoir and a travel book, was presented with the £30,000 (A$48,500) prize at an awards ceremony in London on 5 June.

May We Be Forgiven was chosen from a shortlist of six. Also shortlisted for this year’s award were: Life after Life (Kate Atkinson, Doubleday), Flight Behaviour (Barbara Kingsolver, Faber), Bring up the Bodies (Hilary Mantel, Fourth Estate), Where’d You Go, Bernadette (Maria Semple, Phoenix) and NW (Zadie Smith, Hamish Hamilton). A number of Australian and New Zealand authors were longlisted for this year’s prize.

Chair of judges Miranda Richardson described this year’s shortlist as ‘exceptionally strong’. ‘Our judges’ meeting was long and passionately argued, but in the end we agreed that May We be Forgiven is a dazzling, original, viscerally funny black comedy—a subversion of the American dream. This is a book we want to read again and give to our friends.’

The Women’s Prize for Fiction was established in 1996 to celebrate and promote fiction written by women throughout the world. The Women’s Prize is awarded to the best novel of the year written in English by a woman.

This year’s prize has been privately funded after mobile phone company Orange announced in 2012 that it was ending its sponsorship of the prize. Earlier this week, prize organisers announced a three-year partnership with liqueur company Baileys. For more information about the prize, click here.

Category: Local news