Writers’ Week team ‘excited’ to continue Kerry Group prize
THE glitzy opening night and jam-packed events of this famous week might be on forced leave this year, but that doesn’t stop the big prize going ahead.
Gutted as they were to have to pull the plug on the 2020 festival, the organisers of Listowel Writers’ Week say they are nonetheless thrilled to award the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year.
It’s one of the literary world’s most prestigious in these waters, with a shared prize fund of €17,000.
And among the short-list this year are some of the Irish novel’s heaviest hitters. They are: The River Capture by Mary Costello (Canongate); Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession (Bluemoose Books); Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry (Canongate); Shadowplay by Joseph O’Connor (Harvill Secker Random House); and Girl by Edna O’Brien (Faber).
The five titles were the result of the whittling down of a longlist of 40 novels by judges Carol Drinkwater and Ian McGuire.
“It has been another great year for Irish fiction, and it was a tremendous pleasure to read so many fine, inventive and risk-taking novels,” Ian McGuire said.
“Very hard to choose only five, but the short-list we came up with reflects very well the wide range of theme and subject matter, and the rich variety of styles that we encountered. They are all five terrific novels which deserve to be widely read and admired.”
It was Chairperson of Listowel Writers’ Week Catherine Moylan who revealed the shortlist this week. She described 2020 to date as a difficult one for the festival:
“Whilst it has been a difficult year for ourselves and all literary festivals, it has given us hope and excitement to be able to continue with the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year,” she said.
“This year’s shortlist includes a wonderful combination of celebrated Irish writers along with a debut novelist. The winner of this award will join David Park, Anne Enright and Christine Dwyer Hickey to name but a few,” Ms Moylan added.
The overall winner – of a first prize worth €15,000 – will be announced on Wednesday, May 27, next.
Frank Hayes of Kerry Group said: “Our great literary tradition is of immense importance to Ireland’s cultural heritage and national identity.”