Mantel, Kingsolver make Orange shortlist, as indies dominate

20.04.10 | Katie Allen in The Bookseller

A mix of débuts and established names have made the Orange Prize for Fiction shortlist, announced today (20th April) at a breakfast event at the London Book Fair. The shortlist was indie-heavy with four books on the list, two from Faber and one each from Alma and Serpent's Tail.

Hilary Mantel's Man Booker - winning Wolf Hall (Fourth Estate) will battle Barbara Kingsolver's The Lacuna (Faber) and stablemate Lorrie Moore's first book in 11 years A Gate at the Stairs. Rosie Alison (The Very Thought of You) and Attica Locke's (Black Water Rising) début novels, respectively from indie publishers Alma and Serpent's Tail, also made the list, as did Monique Roffey's The White Woman on the Green Bicycle (Simon & Schuster). (Author photo - Eamonn McCabe)

"This shortlist achieves the near impossible of combining literary merit with sheer readability," said chair of judges Daisy Goodwin.
"With a thriller, historical novels that reflect our world back to us, as well as a tragicomedy about post-9/11 America—there is something here to challenge, amuse and enthrall every kind of reader."

The judges comprised rabbi and author Baroness Neuberger, author Michèle Roberts, journalist Miranda Sawyer and editor of British Vogue Alexandra Shulman.

The winner of the £30,000 prize is announced on 9th June.

The shortlist:

The Very Thought of You by Rosie Alison (Alma Books)

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber)

Black Water Rising by Attica Locke (Serpent's Tail)

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (Fourth Estate)

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore (Faber)

The White Woman on the Green Bicycle by Monique Roffey (S&S)