Happy International Women's Day everyone! Every day we should be inspired by great women, but it's nice to have a special day to celebrate. There are lots of things going on today and in the coming week. Bookwise the 2018 Women's Prize for Fiction longlist was announced. I am always excited to see the list and hopefully discover some great new books.
The longlisted books are as follows:
H(A)PPY by Nicola Barker
The Idiot by Elif Batuman
Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon
Miss Burma by Charmaine Craig
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar
Sight by Jessie Greengrass
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
When I Hit You: Or, A Portrait of the Writer as a Young Wife by Meena Kandasamy
Elmet by Fiona Mozley
The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy
See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt
A Boy in Winter by Rachel Seiffert
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
Not surprising, I have not read any of the books (I started reading the Egan just before the holidays, but then the library book had to go back . . . you know how that goes). I own a copy of the Batuman, which has ended up on my reading pile. Why do I need these little 'excuses' to start new books? Last year I actually managed to read a small handful and I hope to do the same again this year. There are several that look really good, so I have ordered a few and requested a few from the library, so we'll see how it goes!
And the Stella Prize shortlist was announced, so more temptations! It is harder to get my hands on those Australian titles, but I have my eye on a few of the titles, so if I can find a copy there will be more to add to my reading pile.
The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar
Terra Nullius by Claire G. Coleman
The Life to Come by Michelle de Kretser
An Uncertain Grace by Krissy Kneen
The Fish Girl by Mirandi Riwoe
Tracker by Alexis Wright
A few other things caught my eye as well. I wish I could be in London this week to see this pop-up bookshop--lots of things to celebrate there--the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage as well as International Women's Day. I wish they had taken more photos so I could get a better view of the books!
I am very curious about this #ViragoPressForProgress project. It is the "2018 Books for Change promotion". It sounds like anyone can share photos of both Virago and non-Virago books related to a daily theme. Maybe this is an Instagram thing?
And a subject I am especially interested in this year--books in translation--check out this International Women Writers and Translators Who Press for Progress from Words without Borders. I think I need to try at least one of the books/authors/translators mentioned there this year!
Have you come across anything especially interesting today, too?