Dapin shortlisted for 2014 Ondaatje Prize

5 May 2014 Books+Publishing

Mark Dapin has been shortlisted for the 2014 Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize for his novel Spirit House (Macmillan).

The £10,000 (A$18,190) prize for ‘a distinguished work of fiction, nonfiction or poetry evoking the spirit of a place’ is open to books by authors who are a citizen of, or have been resident in, the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland, and may be entered only by publishers based in the UK. Dapin’s novel was entered by its UK publisher Tuskar Rock Press.

Also nominated for the award are: The Blind Man’s Garden (Nadeem Aslam, Faber), Badgerlands (Patrick Barkham, Granta), Four Fields (Tim Dee, Vintage), This Boy (Alan Johnson, Bantam) and Field Notes from a Hidden City (Esther Woolfson, Granta).

Spirit House is the story of a former POW on the Thai-Burma railway, now living in Bondi, who opens up about his horrific experiences to his teenage grandson.

The winner will be announced on 19 May. For more information, visit the website here.

Category: Local news