Gordon Burn Prize 2017 – shortlist announced
21 July 2017
We’re thrilled to announce the shortlist for the Gordon Burn Prize 2017. The list continues to showcase some of the most interesting contemporary writing in its wide-ranging selection of titles.
Six were selected by judges Petina Gappah, Allan Jenkins, Ian Sansom and Cosey Fanni Tutti to go forward:
In the spirit of the Gordon Burn Prize, the shortlist is far-reaching, eclectic and provocative. It includes two debuts, four works of fiction and two of non-fiction, with a third of the list published by two small presses as the resurgence of the independent publisher in the UK continues.
Ian Sansom, one of the judges, commented:
‘Gordon Burn was unique and the Gordon Burn Prize is unique. It recognises what so many prizes fail to recognise: that literature, like all art, is in a constant process of reinvention and renewal and that the novel is a truly bastard form. The Gordon Burn Prize is a celebration of the art of possibility. This year’s shortlist includes hybrid works in many forms – autofiction, memoir, biography, travel writing and crime — and draws attention to brilliant and truly inventive work that might otherwise be overlooked. All ye that are weary and heavy burdened, gaze upon these works and wonder!’
The winner of the Gordon Burn Prize 2017 will be announced at Durham Book Festival on Thursday 12 October 2017. Tickets for the event will be on sale from 10 August.
Discover the titles at gordonburnprize.com
