E U Prize for Literature - Irish Jury Announce 2015 Shortlist

There are very few things in life as pleasurable as reading great writing. One of the highlights of this year for me will certainly be my role as part of the Irish Judging Panel of the E U Prize for Literature. 

I recently reviewed an anthology of Irish contributors (more about that later) and below is a quote from my review. The words reflect well my feelings regarding the material I had the joy to read as part of this European Award.

"Good writing will seduce you. It will suck you into the world it creates, so that for the purest of moments in time, you dance within the life of another, aligned like a silent ghost beside them."

Congrats to Mary Costello, Donal Ryan and Deidre Sullivan.

For full Press Release - see below 

The following titles have been shortlisted for the EU Prize for Literature 2015, a Prize for emerging talents in the field of contemporary fiction (alphabetical order):

Mary Costello, Academy Street (Cannongate Books, 2014)

Donal Ryan, The Spinning Heart (Doubleday Ireland, 2012)

Deirdre Sullivan, Primperfect (Little Island, 2014)

Ireland is one of twelve countries who will provide a national winner of the EU Prize for Literature in 2015. See: http://www.euprizeliterature.eu/

The aim of the European Prize for Literature is to put the spotlight on the creativity and diverse wealth of Europe’s contemporary literature in the field of fiction, to promote the circulation of literature within Europe and encourage greater interest in non-national literary works.

The €5,000 prize is financed by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union whose objective is to achieve three main goals: to promote cross-border mobility of those working in the cultural sector; to encourage the transnational circulation of cultural and artistic output; and to foster intercultural dialogue.

The twelve winners will be announced 14 April 2015 at the London Book Fair.

A ceremony will follow in Brussels on 23 June 2015.

The Irish Jury

STEPHEN BOYLAN is Books Category Manager for Eason's, the largest suppliers of books in Ireland. He also reviews books for RTE, the national state television and radio broadcaster.

CONOR KOSTICK Former Chairperson of the Irish Writers' Union and board member of the Irish Copyright Licensing Agency, Conor is the author of fourteen books of fiction and history, including the award-winning Epic

NESSA O'MAHONY has published four volumes of poetry, including a verse novel.

LOUISE PHILLIPS is bestselling author of the psychological crime thrillers, Red Ribbons, The Doll’s House and Last Kiss. All three novels were nominated for the Ireland AM Crime Fiction Book of the Year at the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards. Her second novel, The Doll’s House, won the award in 2013. 

FERGAL TOBIN was publishing director of Ireland’s largest publishing house for more than twenty years and was president of the Federation of European Publishers from 2010 to 2012.