‘S SUNDAY TIMES LITERARY AWARDS LONGLIST
THIS is the 17th edition of the Sunday Times fiction prize, named for Barry Ronge, the arts commentator who was one of the founders of our literary awards. The criteria stipulate that the winning novel should be one of “rare imagination and style . . . a tale so compelling as to become an enduring landmark of contemporary fiction”. OUTH African authors are spoiled for choice. Their local stories are stitched into a tapestry of a landscape ranging from tropical heat to dusty dorps. The longlist this year contains titles that weave the land and the people into compelling tales. Some authors deal with historical dispossession and despair; others discover the magic hidden in thick foliage and stark dustlands. All the authors examine the essence of a people propelled by a dream and led astray by dreamers — some with deft touches and others with scream-with-laughter satire. Crime remains a distinct theme but there’s always love; often sweet and sometimes twisted. It is going to be a struggle this year to choose one winner from a list that contains works by writers presenting their country in words that strike at the heart and linger on the synapses.” —