Difference between revisions of "Orange Prize 2011"
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=== Orange Prize 2011 === | === Orange Prize 2011 === | ||
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| + | '''Short-listed Books''' | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author=Emma Donoghue | ||
| + | |title=Room | ||
| + | |rating=5 | ||
| + | |summary=Narrated in the voice of five year old Jack, this is a haunting, innovative and brave story that will stay with you long after the final page. A sad situation, lightly and movingly told. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0330519018</amazonuk> | ||
| + | }} | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author= Aminatta Forna | ||
| + | |title=The Memory of Love | ||
| + | |rating=Not Reviewed | ||
| + | |summary= | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>1408809656</amazonuk> | ||
| + | }} | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author=Emma Henderson | ||
| + | |title=Grace Williams Says it Loud | ||
| + | |rating=4 | ||
| + | |summary=Grace, aged eleven, is sent to the Briar Mental Institute as her parents can no longer cope with her care. She is befriended there by a young boy, Daniel, who is epileptic and also has no arms after a terrible accident. Together we see the horrors of life in the Briar, and also their slowly growing love affair with each other. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>144470401X</amazonuk> | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author=Nicole Krauss | ||
| + | |title=Great House | ||
| + | |rating=4.5 | ||
| + | |summary=This is a demanding, but rewarding read. It's unashamedly literary in style. While certainly not to everyone's taste, it's exceptionally clever and beautifully written. Just don't expect much in the way of laughs here. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0670919322</amazonuk> | ||
| + | }} | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author= Tea Obreht | ||
| + | |title=The Tiger's Wife | ||
| + | |rating=4.5 | ||
| + | |summary=Téa Obreht's 'The Tiger's Wife' comes with a fair degree of hype from the US, and largely it lives up to it, which is no small achievement. The main story is set in Yugoslavia and explores a young doctor, Natalia, seeking for the truth about her grandfather's death, while on a mission to deliver much needed medical aid to an orphanage in the war-ravaged Balkans. But what sets this book apart is the intricate weaving of reality with the myths and stories of the region. In particular there are two myths that represent a good chunk of the page count: the story of a tiger who has escaped from captivity after the World War two bombing of Belgrade and who has settled near a remote mountain village where Natalia's grandfather is growing up, and who develops a strange relationship with a deaf-mute girl who becomes known as 'the tiger's wife'; and a mysterious story of the 'Deathless Man' whom the grandfather encounters at various points in his life who appears to have the power to foresee others' death without being able to die himself. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0297859013</amazonuk> | ||
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| + | {{topten | ||
| + | |author=Kathleen Winter | ||
| + | |title=Annabel | ||
| + | |rating=4 | ||
| + | |summary= A book about a very sensitive and emotive subject. In 1960s rural Canada a baby is born but there is confusion as to whether the baby is a boy or a girl - and so starts a tortuous life journey for Wayne/Annabel. | ||
| + | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224091271</amazonuk> | ||
| + | }} | ||
| + | |||
| + | '''Other books on the long list''' | ||
{{topten | {{topten | ||
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|summary= Jaffy Brown lives a poor existence in the east end of London. But one day he literally comes across a tiger - and his life is changed forever. | |summary= Jaffy Brown lives a poor existence in the east end of London. But one day he literally comes across a tiger - and his life is changed forever. | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847676561</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847676561</amazonuk> | ||
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|summary= | |summary= | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849010331</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849010331</amazonuk> | ||
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|summary=I have to say, overall I was slightly disappointed with this novel. It is very much a work of two parts - which is a good enough approach in itself. Yet when the two parts are so dreadfully uneven, then it is either going to be a resounding success, or potentially a disastrous flop. Fortunately, this managed to avoid the latter conclusion - but only due to the vastly superior quality of part two. | |summary=I have to say, overall I was slightly disappointed with this novel. It is very much a work of two parts - which is a good enough approach in itself. Yet when the two parts are so dreadfully uneven, then it is either going to be a resounding success, or potentially a disastrous flop. Fortunately, this managed to avoid the latter conclusion - but only due to the vastly superior quality of part two. | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224090976</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224090976</amazonuk> | ||
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|summary=A complex novel about childbirth in the past, present and future, which is a challenging but rewarding read. Recommended, (but if you’re pregnant, wait until after the birth). | |summary=A complex novel about childbirth in the past, present and future, which is a challenging but rewarding read. Recommended, (but if you’re pregnant, wait until after the birth). | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>057124517X</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>057124517X</amazonuk> | ||
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|summary= Na Ga finds herself in Wanting, on the China / Burma border where her former American boyfriend has arranged for her to cross the border to her native Burma. Exposing aspects of Southeast Asia that are not normally seen by Westerners, encompassing rural Burma, Rangoon, northern China, the brothels of northern Thailand and Bangkok, the book relates her difficult life and is ultimately about acceptance and forgiveness. It's beautiful, sad and uplifting all at the same time. | |summary= Na Ga finds herself in Wanting, on the China / Burma border where her former American boyfriend has arranged for her to cross the border to her native Burma. Exposing aspects of Southeast Asia that are not normally seen by Westerners, encompassing rural Burma, Rangoon, northern China, the brothels of northern Thailand and Bangkok, the book relates her difficult life and is ultimately about acceptance and forgiveness. It's beautiful, sad and uplifting all at the same time. | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>009953598X</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>009953598X</amazonuk> | ||
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|summary=Ria, solitary, middle-aged poet, was idly watching the river one night when she saw a swimmer. It wasn't just the time of day which was unusual, but the river was hardly clean – and then she heard a noise downstairs. In this remote part of Suffolk it wasn't unusual to leave doors unlocked and the following morning she realised that a loaf of bread had been stolen. It was strange that she didn't really feel fear, but when the visits and minor thefts continued she waited up to catch the swimmer, who stole small amounts of food – and played the piano like an angel. | |summary=Ria, solitary, middle-aged poet, was idly watching the river one night when she saw a swimmer. It wasn't just the time of day which was unusual, but the river was hardly clean – and then she heard a noise downstairs. In this remote part of Suffolk it wasn't unusual to leave doors unlocked and the following morning she realised that a loaf of bread had been stolen. It was strange that she didn't really feel fear, but when the visits and minor thefts continued she waited up to catch the swimmer, who stole small amounts of food – and played the piano like an angel. | ||
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0007301596</amazonuk> | |amazonuk=<amazonuk>0007301596</amazonuk> | ||
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Revision as of 10:26, 12 April 2011
Orange Prize 2011
Short-listed Books
Other books on the long list
