The quintessential
New Zealand character comes to the fore in the finalists for the New Zealand
Post Book Awards 2014, announced today. Selected from 150 entries, the judges
say the finalist books capture the essence of the country’s psyche — not just
in place and people, but by capturing what makes us tick as New Zealanders.
The judges said
they were surprised at how relatively easily they agreed on their choices of
finalists. Convenor of the judging panel, Miriama Kamo, says, “As fairly
opinionated and confident people we surmised that these finalists were of such
quality that they stood up and spoke for themselves. Having said that, not
every selection came easily as there were many excellent books from which to choose
our finalists.”
The finalists
include eight non-fiction books on a variety of themes, among them a biography
of Labour Prime Minister Norman Kirk, a lavishly photographed journey around
our coastline, a search for a family history that was inspired by the
Christchurch earthquakes and a re-examination of the Pike River mine tragedy.
Fiction
finalists include, not surprisingly, Eleanor Catton’s Man Booker Prize winner The Luminaries, set on the West Coast.
The three other fiction finalists are Anne Kennedy’s The Last Days of the National Costume — a gripping tale of illicit
love, passion and embroidery and The
Bright Side of my Condition by Charlotte Randall, based on a true story of
four escaped Norfolk Island convicts who were deposited on The Snares — a group
of islands south of Stewart Island. Damien Wilkins’ book Max Gate departs this year’s New Zealand theme, with an insightful
novel on the death of Thomas Hardy.
The four Poetry
finalists include two first-time authors — Caoilinn Hughes for her book Gathering Evidence and Marty Smith with Horse with Hat. Auckland author Michele
Leggott’s Heartland follows some of
her own movements and moments — to Devonport, to Australia and to the north of
the country. Poet Laureate Vincent O’Sullivan’s Us, then explores experience and memory, belief, ways of
seeing, other worlds we find set against our own – and individual lives within
the frame of a collective history.
“Poetry in New
Zealand is in fantastic shape with a number of brilliant new poets making
themselves known, Caoilinn Hughes and Marty Smith among them,” says Miriama.
The New Zealand
Post Book Awards 2014 judging panel comprises acclaimed New Zealand artist,
Dick Frizzell; award-winning Radio New Zealand presenter, Kim Hill; poet and
novelist, Elizabeth Smither; and literary critic, Peter Simpson. The panel is
convened by broadcaster Miriama Kamo.
Miriama said
that the judges congratulated all the finalists on their achievements in being
named on the Awards’ shortlist. “We had to make our selections from a very
strong field this year. Every author should be proud to be in such excellent
company. From new authors to established prize-winning writers, all contributed
to a stellar year in New Zealand writing.”
“We would
also like to congratulate the publishers of these finalists’ titles. The design
and production standards are very high, with some stunning works in the
Illustrated Non-fiction category in particular. It’s great to see that the
importance of the design, images, typography and paper stock are considered as
important as the words themselves. These are all beautiful books and they will
be a pleasure to read in years to come.”
People’s Choice opens today
The ever-popular
People’s choice award is the public’s opportunity to vote for their favourite
book of the year. Eligible books must be written by New Zealand authors and
published in New Zealand within the period of 1 June 2013-31 May 2014. Readers
can vote online or in a book store. Voting opens on Wednesday, 23 July and
closes on Friday, 15 August.
Prizes
A
significant prize pool will see the overall winner of the New Zealand Post Book
of the Year award receive $15,000. Winners of the four category awards will each
receive $10,000; People’s Choice $5,000; Nielsen Booksellers’ Choice $2,500;
and each of the winners of the three New Zealand Society of Authors Best First
Book awards, $2,500.
National Poetry Day
New Zealand
poetry will be celebrated with National Poetry Day on Friday, 22 August with
more than 60 colourful events planned for around the country. Aspiring poets,
poetry lovers and established poetry writers can enjoy a range of events that
will capture imaginations and provide inspiration to not only write their own
verse, but also to enjoy listening to poetry and/or performing a piece of
poetry.
Winners announced on 27 August
The winner
of the New Zealand Post Book of the Year will be announced at a glittering
ceremony at Wellington’s Te Papa Museum on Wednesday, 27 August. Also announced
will be the four category winners, People’s Choice winner and the Nielsen
Booksellers’ Choice award. The three winners of the New Zealand Society of
Authors Best First Book awards, announced on Wednesday, 16 July, will be
presented with their prizes.
The New Zealand
Post Book Awards are managed by Booksellers New Zealand and sponsored by New
Zealand Post. The awards are also supported by Creative New Zealand and Book
Tokens New Zealand.
The finalists
for the New Zealand Post Book Awards 2014, by category, are:
Fiction
·
The
Bright Side of my Condition by Charlotte Randall,
Penguin Books
·
The
Last Days of the National Costume by Anne
Kennedy, Allen & Unwin
·
The
Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, Victoria University
Press
·
Max
Gate by Damien Wilkins, Victoria University
Press
Poetry
·
Gathering
Evidence by Caoilinn Hughes, Victoria
University Press
·
Heartland
by Michele Leggott, Auckland University Press
·
Horse
with Hat by Marty Smith, Victoria University
Press
·
Us,
then by Vincent O’Sullivan, Victoria
University Press
Illustrated
Non-fiction
·
Coast:
A New Zealand journey by Bruce Ansley
& Jane Ussher, Random House NZ (Godwit)
·
Greer
Twiss: Sculptor by Greer Twiss, Dr Robin Woodward
& Haru Sameshima, Ron Sang Publications
·
New
Zealand and the First World War 1914-1919 by
Damien Fenton, Penguin Books in association with the Ministry for Culture and
Heritage
·
Promoting
Prosperity: The art of early New Zealand advertising by
Peter Alsop and Gary Stewart, Craig Potton Publishing
General Non-fiction
·
A
History of Silence by Lloyd Jones,
Penguin Books
·
Peter
McLeavey: The life and times of a New Zealand art dealer by
Jill Trevelyan, Te Papa Press
·
The
Mighty Totara: The life and times of Norman Kirk by
David Grant, Random House NZ
·
Tragedy
at Pike River Mine by Rebecca Macfie,
Awa Press
Nielsen Booksellers’ Choice
·
Beyond
the State: New Zealand state houses from modest to modern, by
Bill McKay, Andrea Stevens & Simon Devitt, Penguin Books
·
Molesworth:
Stories from New Zealand’s largest high-country station by
Harry Broad and Rob Suisted, Craig Potton Publishing
·
The
Beginner’s Guide to Hunting and Fishing in New Zealand by
Paul Adamson, Random House NZ
·
The
Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, Victoria University
Press
2 comments:
Thank goodness for you Graeme. Nice clear piece: Stuff and Herald made such a dog's breakfast of reporting this it was hard to see who finalists were.
Oh, and it's Graham, I know that. silly language having two words for same name.
Post a Comment