An acclaimed first novel about a woman sentenced to death in 19th-century Iceland is in line for the richest literary prize in Australia, worth a total of $125,000.
Hannah Kent's Burial Rites is on the shortlist for the Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Fiction, in what has been a particularly strong year for local novels. If the acclaimed book wins it will then be considered for the $100,000 Victorian Prize for Literature along with the winners of the prizes for non-fiction, drama, poetry and young-adult writing, each of which is worth $25,000.
But Kent faces stiff competition from a number of big-name novelists and serial award winners. Also up for the fiction prize are Miles Franklin-winning writers Michelle de Kretser (Questions of Travel), Alex Miller (Coal Creek), Tim Winton (Eyrie), Alexis Wright (The Swan Book), and the much-admired The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan.
Kent said she was delighted to be on the list – "I am still pinching myself" – and overwhelmed by the reception her novel had had in Australia and Britain. "Word of mouth has been fantastic and the independent booksellers, in particular, have been supporting it."
Timing of the awards has changed, with the presentation now in late January. Michael Williams, director of the Wheeler Centre, which administers the awards, said the switch was designed to better connect readers with the shortlisted titles.
"With the embarrassment of riches in Australian publishing this year, what better time than summer for readers to catch up with 21 of the very best? The new timeframe will also allow the awards to better showcase a discrete calendar year of literary achievements each year, and kick off the new year with a significant literary celebration."
The non-fiction list boasts its usual diversity, with titles ranging from Gideon Haigh's assessment of Shane Warne to Germaine Greer's account of her chunk of Queensland rainforest, to Helen Trinca's biography of London-based Australian novelist Madeleine St John.
Patricia Cornelius is shortlisted for the drama award for Sav-ages, her searing riff on the case of Dianne Bramble, who died in mysterious circumstances during a cruise, while Andrew Bovell, with whom Cornelius worked on Who's Afraid of the Working Class, is included for his stage adaptation of Kate Grenville's novel, The Secret River. The third shortlisted play, Medea, by Kate Mulvany and Anne Louiser Sarks, won five awards at the Sydney Theatre Awards earlier this year.
Fiona Wood's Wild-life is shortlisted for the young-adult award along with Friday Brown by Vikki Wakefield and My Life as an Alphabet by Barry Jonsberg. Wildlife was the subject of a small bidding war among publishers in the US, and Wood has since signed a three-book deal with a Little, Brown imprint.
Former Age Book of the Year winner Jennifer Maiden is shortlisted in the poetry section for Liquid Nitrogen, a collection that features such characters as Eleanor Roosevelt, Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd, Hillary Clinton and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. She is joined by Brendan Ryan (Travelling through the Family) and Michael Brennan (Autoethno-graphic).
The awards will be presented on January 28 at Government House.
THE SHORTLISTS
Fiction
The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
Burial Rites by Hannah Kent
Questions of Travel by Michelle de Kretser
Coal Creek by Alex Miller
Eyrie by Tim Winton
The Swan Book by Alexis Wright
Non-fiction
White Beech by Germaine Greer
On Warne by Gideon Haigh
Gardens of Fire by Robert Kenny
Boy, Lost: A Family Memoir by Kristina Olsson
Forgotten War by Henry Reynolds
Madeleine: A Life of Madeleine St John by Helen Trinca
Drama
The Secret River by Andrew Bovell
Savages by Patricia Cornelius
Medea by Anne-Louise Sarks and Kate Mulvany
Poetry
Autoethnographic by Michael Brennan
Liquid Nitrogen by Jennifer Maiden
Travelling Through the Family by Brendan Ryan
Young Adults
My Life as an Alphabet by Barry Jonsberg
Friday Brown by Vikki Wakefield
Wildlife by Fiona Wood
