Two Indian authors are among the 16 from around the world to make the cut for the U.K.’s annual Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist released in London on Thursday.
Arundhati Roy’s second work of fiction, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness , and Meena Kandasamy’s tale of a violent marriage, When I Hit You: Or, A Portrait of the Writer as a Young Wife , are in the running for the £30,000 prize.
“What is striking about the list, apart from the wealth of talent, is that women writers refuse to be pigeon-holed. We have searing social realism, adventure, comedy, poetic truths, ingenious plots and unforgettable characters. Women of the world are a literary force to be reckoned with,” said Sarah Sands, a BBC editor and chair of the judges.
Others on this year’s list include British Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie ( Home Fire ); Nicola Barker for ( HAPPY ); Elif Batuman ( The Idiot ); Joanna Cannon ( Three Things About Elsie ); Charmaine Craig for ( Miss Burma ); Jennifer Egan for ( Manhattan Beach ) and Imogen Hermes Gowar ( The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock ).
The list also includes Jessie Greengrass ( Sight ); Gail Honeyman ( Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine ); Fiona Mozley ( Elmet ); Sarah Schmidt ( See What I Have Done ); Rachel Seiffert ( A Boy in Winter ); Kit de Waal ( The Trick to Time ); and Jesmyn Ward ( Sing, Unburied, Sing ).
This year’s longlist covers both new and well-established writers. There are six first novels on the list and four nationalities are represented: India, U.S., U.K. and Australia.
Ms. Sands leads this year’s team of judges that include British-Indian journalist and broadcaster Anita Anand, comedian Katie Brand, Women’s Equality Party co-founder Catherine Mayer and actor Imogen Stubbs. The prize will be awarded on June 6 at an awards ceremony in London.
