Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie of Kartography and Salt and Saffron fame has been shortlisted for the 2015 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction for her novel A God in Every Stone.
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Published in 2014, The Guardian described A God in Every Stone as a story that “follows a young Londoner,
Vivian Rose Spencer, from an archaeological dig in Turkey back to Britain where she works as a Voluntary Aid Detachment nurse during the first world war. After a crucial betrayal, she travels on to Peshawar.” Critics have called the book ‘evocative’ and ‘beautifully composed’. Six books were shortlisted for the prize, announced on the awards website. The Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction is the UK’s only annual book award for fiction written by a woman. On Twitter, Shamsie acknowledged her fellow nominees, saying she’s in great company.
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This is truly excellent company to be in. Ali Smith, Sarah Waters, Anne Tyler, Rachel Cusk and @LalinePaull. @BaileysPrize #shortlist
— Kamila Shamsie (@kamilashamsie) April 13, 2015
According to the site, this year’s six shortlisted books were selected from a longlist of twenty books. This year’s selection includes five previously shortlisted authors and one debut novelist.
Happy ladies at the @BaileysPrize shortlist announcement @kamilashamsie @_rachelholmes @tahmima @AlexandraPring pic.twitter.com/3jkSzXnzFl
— Alexa von Hirschberg (@alexavh) April 13, 2015
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Rachel Cusk’s Outline, Laline Paull’s The Bees, Ali Smith’s How To Be Both,Anne Tyler’s A Spool of Blue Thread and Sarah Waters’ The Paying Guests are the other books that made the shortlist. Chair of judges, Shami Chakrabarti, said: “The novels we shared and the shortlist we ultimately honour form a body of great women’s writing to entertain and inspire for many years to come.” The overall winner will be announced at an awards ceremony on 3rd June 2015.
