As usual I’m late to the party, but the Shirley Jackson Award nominees were announced a few days ago.  The full list is here.

Because this is a juried award, I take great interest in categories like Best Novel.  Essentially I see it as a potential reading list.  Of the 6 books announced, I own two (the Cisco and the Duncan, though I haven’t read them) and I’ve never heard of the other four.

I think this is exciting.  With an ego as big as mine it’s easy to be convinced that any book worth reading I already know about.  So to come across four unknown novels chosen by a group of judges represented by the likes of  Laird Barron, Gary K Wolfe and Karon Warren, you can’t help but get that “shiny new book” tingle.

Or maybe that’s just me.

And because I’m also parochial, I want to congratulate fellow Aussie Deb Biancotti for her nomination (“And the Dead Shall Outnumber the Living,” (Ishtar, Gilgamesh Press)).  I haven’t read the novella, but I have read Deb’s work (as recently as Bad Power) and she’s a marvelous writer who deserves the recognition.