Prime Minister’s Literary Awards shortlists announced

The 2020 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards shortlists have been announced by Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP.

The Awards recognise the exceptional talent of Australian writers across six categories and help raise the profile of our established and emerging writers, inspiring audiences to choose new Australian books.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that now, more than ever, we see the profound contribution of books to our cultural, intellectual and recreational life.

“Australia’s literary sector entertains us and educates us. Our authors, illustrators, poets and historians are our storytellers, shaping our national consciousness and contributing to a record of our culture,” he said.

“Books have the power to educate and comfort us, and I know many Australians of all ages have drawn on books during COVID-19,” said the Prime Minister.

Minister Fletcher said the 2020 shortlists highlight themes that are relevant to us all. “From more than 550 eligible entries, our judges had the difficult task of selecting 30 books, which this year capture diverse voices that make up Australia’s literary community,” he said.

“I welcome the large number of stories by Australian Indigenous writers and women that are a prominent feature of this year’s shortlist. I congratulate the shortlisted authors and thank the judging panels for their work,” said Minister Fletcher.

Winners of the 2020 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards will be announced in December 2020. For more information, visit: www.arts.gov.au for details.

Image: The Prime Minister’s Literary Awards Fiction Short List (supplied)

The 2020 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards shortlists are:

Fiction

Exploded View, Carrie Tiffany, Text Publishing
The Death of Jesus, J. M. Coetzee, Text Publishing
The Weekend, Charlotte Wood, Allen & Unwin
The Yield, Tara June Winch, Hamish Hamilton: Penguin Random House
Wolfe Island, Lucy Treloar, Picador: Pan Macmillan

Non-fiction

Hearing Maud: A Journey for a Voice, Jessica White, University of Western Australia Publishing
Sea People: The Puzzle of Polynesia, Christina Thompson, William Collins: HarperCollins
See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Abuse, Jess Hill, Black Inc.
Songspirals: Sharing Women’s Wisdom of Country through Songlines, Gay’wu Group of Women, Allen & Unwin
The Enchantment of the Long-haired Rat: A Rodent History of Australia, Tim Bonyhady, Text Publishing

Australian history

From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting, Judith Brett, Text Publishing
Meeting the Waylo: Aboriginal Encounters in the Archipelago, Tiffany Shellam, University of Western Australia Publishing
Progressive New World: How Settler Colonialism and Transpacific Exchange Shaped American Reform, Marilyn Lake, Harvard University Press
Sludge: Disaster on Victoria’s Goldfields, Susan Lawrence and Peter Davies, La Trobe University Press in conjunction with Black Inc.
The Oarsmen: The Remarkable Story of the Men Who Rowed from the Great War to Peace, Scott Patterson, Hardie Grant Books

Poetry

Birth Plan, LK Holt, Vagabond Press
Empirical, Lisa Gorton, Giramondo Poets
Heide, O., Giramondo Poets
The Future Keepers, Nandi Chinna, Fremantle Press
The Lost Arabs, Omar Sakr, University of Queensland Press

Children’s literature

Catch a Falling Star, Meg McKinlay, Walker Books
Cheeky Dogs: To Lake Nash and Back, Dion Beasley and Johanna Bell, Allen & Unwin
Cooee Mittigar: A Story on Darug Songlines, Jasmine Seymour, illustrated by Leanne Mulgo Watson, Magabala Books
One Careless Night, Christina Booth, Black Dog Books: Walker Books
Winter of the White Bear, Martin Ed Chatterton, Dirt Lane Press

Young adult literature