Our annual pick of the most exciting debut fiction has previously tipped Sally Rooney and Louise Kennedy, Tom Crewe and Douglas Stuart. Here the class of 2024 tell us their storiesEach year since 2014, the Observer New Review’s writers and editors have read scores of forthcoming debut novels from authors based in the UK and Ireland in order to spotlight the best; here’s our pick of 2024. As ever, our only guide was the quality of the books in front of us. This year’s list includes industry-tipped titles snapped up by big-spending publishers, but also a canny acquisition from a small independent press. There’s a third book from someone already widely celebrated as a writer of short stories, and even a debut from an actual Observer journalist. These are simply the books we rated most – and we think you’ll love them too.In previous years, we led you to Douglas Stuart’s Booker-winning Shuggie Bain, Gail Honeyman’s global bestseller Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Sheena Patel’s cult indie hit I’m a Fan. Last year’s picks continue to hoover up honours. Tom Crewe’s The New Life won the Orwell prize for fiction, while Michael Magee (Close to Home) won the Rooney prize, awarded to an outstanding Irish writer under 40. Both writers are on the shortlist for this month’s Nero debut fiction prize, along with Stephen Buoro, another of our 2023 picks.I’d take the washing up shifts no one else wanted so I could be at the back, jotting things downThere’s violence, but it’s about... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-01-14 07:00:20 UTC ]
Crime author Val McDermid is to write a contemporary re-working of Jane Austen's Northanger... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Glasgow-based independent Freight Books has bought a collection of short stories by Rodge Glass,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Science-fiction great Ray Bradbury died Tuesday night in California at the age of 91. He was renowned for his short stories as well as for the dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451, which cast readers into a Cold War-inspired future of paranoid book burning. Back in 2005, Bryan Curtis argued that,... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2012-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While 2011 saw fewer announcements of layoffs and buyouts in the newspaper industry than previous years, attrition continued quietly and relentlessly, with the nation’s biggest newspaper publishers trimming their combined work forces by 7.2 ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The longlist for the Orwell Prize for political writing has been announced, with late author... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Chatto & Windus has acquired a collection of short stories by Nigerian author A Igoni Barrett... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The under-the-radar author won for her collection "Binocular Vision: New and Selected Stories."Reporting from New York -- The National Book Critics Circle gave its 2011 fiction prize to Edith Pearlman, an under-the-radar writer of short stories, at its annual awards ceremony Thursday evening at... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-03-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Orion is publishing an exclusive trilogy of short stories by crime writer R J Ellory, called... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 28/10/2011 - 10:36 Pan Macmillan has acquired a collection of short stories from bestselling crime and thriller writer Peter James, with publishing director Wayne Brookes buying UK and Commonwealth rights through agent Carole Blake at Blake... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 28/09/2011 - 15:32 Orion is to publish six short stories from bestselling author Michael Connelly as ebook exclusives, featuring his series character LAPD detective Harry Bosch. Two collections of three short stories will be published, each... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 22/09/2011 - 11:01 Faber is to publish a new detective novel from P D James which combines a murder investigation with the world and characters of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, revisiting Darcy and Elizabeth six years into their... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 13/09/2011 - 09:12 Joanna Trollope is to write a contemporary reworking of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility as part of a new series to be published by HarperFiction. Publishing director Louisa Joyner bought world rights from James Gill at... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 31/08/2011 - 09:14 Headline is publishing its first ebook exclusive, releasing a collection of five short stories by Victoria Hislop, along with a preview of the first chapter of her upcoming novel, in digital format. The collection, One... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 26/08/2011 - 08:48 Penguin is reissuing its collections of short stories for adults by renowned children's author Roald Dahl. The rejacketed paperback versions, priced £8.99, will be reissued in four batches, beginning with Someone Like... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 25/08/2011 - 07:00 The Orwell Prize is to blog George Orwells hop-picking diary entries, which went on to form part of his novel A Clergymans Daughter. Starting today, the political writing award will post a daily blog 80 years to the day that... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 29/07/2011 - 15:25 Bath-based independent Palazzo is to publish illustrated editions of Jane Austen's novels to mark the bicentenary of their original publication. The Bath Bicentenary Editions will launch with Sense and Sensibility, first... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 28/07/2011 - 08:37 BBC Radio 4 seems to have performed a partial u-turn on its decision to cut the number of short stories it airs from three to one per week, with a compromise of two weekly broadcasts. Listeners, authors and celebrities such as... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 27/07/2011 - 15:15 Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird has been voted the most popular title to be given away as part of World Book Night 2012. The organisation launched a public vote last month asking people to vote for the titles they... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 27/07/2011 - 15:15 Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is the most popular title among the public to be given away as part of World Book Night 2012. The organisation launched a public vote last month asking people to vote for the titles they... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Wed, 18/05/2011 - 09:18 The late lord chief justice Tom Bingham has been awarded the Orwell Prize for political writing for his book The Rule of Law (Penguin). Bingham, a former master of the rolls, lord chief justice, and senior law lord, died in... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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