International IMPAC Dublin Literary award longlist announced

by abevan on 2 November, 2009

Books by 156 authors from 43 different countries go to make up the longlist for the 2010 International IMPAC Dublin Literary award.
Writing in today’s Irish Times, Eileen Battersby describes the longlist as ‘the most exciting in the €100,000 award’s history’.
Despite the negative effect of the recession on book sales, she writes ‘… books are certainly being read, libraries are sustaining readers and making a breathtaking range of titles available; gifted translators are apparently working overtime; and readers are not only reading, they are reading the best writers in the world’.
Four Irish writers are featured on the shortlist: Sebastian Barry with his The Sacred Scripture, Deirdre Madden for Molly Fox’s Birthday, David Parks for The Truth Commissioner and Joseph O’Neill for Netherland.
The longlist, which can be be viewed on www.impacdublinaward.ie, was announced by Cllr. Emer Costello, Lord Mayor of Dublin. The books on the IMPAC list were nominated by 163 libraries in 123 cities from 43 countries worldwide.
Dublin City Council will announce the shortlist on April 14 2010 and the Lord Mayor will reveal the winning novel on June 17 2010.