- Karen E. Bender, “Refund”
- Angela Flournoy, “The Turner House”
- Lauren Groff, “Fates and Furies”
- Adam Johnson, “Fortune Smiles”
- Hanya Yanagihara, “A Little Life”
No surprise at all to see A Little Life appear as a finalist. It’s a novel that I’m sure I’ll be seeing allot more of next year and I would be surprised if it didn’t win the 2016 Pulitzer (though I was convinced it would win the Man Booker and I was wrong about that). I’m sure it’s also the favourite to take home the National Book Award for best novel.
Other impressions:
- I see two short story collections nominated. I love this aspect of the NBA, that they mix the short story with the novel. Otherwise I wouldn’t have been exposed to Phil Klay’s brilliant collection Redeployment winner of last year’s fiction award.
- Having said that, the Bender is currently out of print with plans to republish the book in January. I can’t wait that long so hopefully I’ll be able to source a second hand copy.
- Also, we have four woman on the ballot. This is wonderful and fantastic and will certainly annoy those people – usually white blokes – who believe that all this talk of diversity has limited opportunities for guys!
- The buzz for both the Groff – it received a very positive review in the New York Times also hitting the bestseller list – makes it a genuine contender for the prize. The same goes for Angela Flournoy’s The Turner House who has already been distinguished as a “5 under 35” honouree.
Expect reviews in two weeks.
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