Shortlist for IMPAC Prize

the eight novels on this year’s shortlist;
1. The Speed of Light – Javier Cercas (Spanish) in translation. Bloomsbury
2. The Sweet and Simple Kind – Yasmine Gooneraratne (Sri Lankan) Perrera Hussein Publishing House
3. De Niro’s Game – Rawi Hage (Lebanese / Canadian) House of Anansi Press
4. Dreams of Speaking – Gail Jones (Australian) Harvill Secker / Vintage
5. Let It Be Morning – Sayed Kashua (Israeli) in translation. Black Cat / Grove Atlantic
6. The Attack – Yasmina Khadra (Algerian) in translation. Vintage / Nan A. Talese
7. The Woman Who Waited – Andrei Makine (Russian) in translation. Sceptre
8. Winterwood – Patrick McCabe (Irish) Bloomsbury

SMH April 5, 2008 - 12:04PM
Gail Jones shortlisted for IMPAC Prize
April 5, 2008 - 12:04PM

Eight novels, including Dreams of Speaking by Australian author Gail Jones, have made the shortlist for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.
The shortlist was selected from a total of 137 novels nominated this year. The Award is worth €100,000 ($170,000) and is the world's most valuable literary prize for a single work of fiction published in English. The eight shortlisted novels are among 137 nominated by 162 public library systems in 122 cities worldwide.
Described in the Sydney Morning Herald as a meditation on cultural displacement and the aesthetics of technology, Dreams of Speaking was shortlisted for the 2007 Miles Franklin Award but lost out to Carpentaria by Alexis Wright.
The IMPAC Award is presented annually with the objective of promoting excellence in world literature. It is open to novels written in any language and by authors of any nationality, provided the work has been published in English or English translation in the specified time period as outlined in the rules and conditions for the year.
Previous winners of the award include Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson (2007) and The Master by Colm Toibin (2006).
The winner will be announced on 12th June.
Dreams of Speaking by Gail Jones (Vintage) is one of eight titles on the shortlist for the €100,000 (A$160,000) IMPAC award, the world's richest single prize for a work of fiction.
Nominations from 161 public libraries in 121 cities around the world were first whittled into a longlist of 137 titles, before a judging panel selected the shortlist.
Commenting on the award, Deirdre Ellis King, of Dublin City Library, responsible for collating the worldwide library nominations, said: 'The themes of the 2008 shortlisted titles are international and include war, love, terrorism, politics, religion, family and murder. Nominated by public libraries in Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Ireland, Lebanon, Sri Lanka and the USA, they prove that such a high standard of literature can be read and appreciated by anyone.'
The panel of six judges responsible for drawing up the shortlist is drawn from six different countries. The voting members are Helon Habila (Nigeria), Patricia Duncker (UK, Jamaica), Aamer Hussein (Pakistan), and Eibhlín Evans (Eire). The panel is chaired by the former chief judge of the US Court of Appeals, Eugene R Sullivan, who has a non-voting role.