Shock ending: how the Costa book awards changed reading – and pitted husband against wife

After 50 years, the prize has been scrapped. How did it change Britain’s literary landscape? And what happened at the awards when Margaret Drabble was seated next to Theresa May?Margaret Drabble was a bright young star with five novels to her name in 1971, when she was talked into joining her old friend JB Priestley on the judging panel for a new book prize. “Jack told me that I should spend the fee (which came in wine) by choosing some very nice half-bottles to drink by myself, which I did,” she recalls.Drabble argued for a biography of the playwright Henrik Ibsen, Priestley was keen on a novel by Gerda Charles, and their fellow judge, the critic Anthony Thwaite, championed a poetry collection by Geoffrey Hill. The glory of the new, brewery-sponsored awards was that all three could have prizes, so it all went swimmingly, with none of the squabbles that had already begun to bedevil the Booker, launched two years earlier. These arguments had included one over the literary quality of a certain Margaret Drabble, who (according to Booker judge Dame Rebecca West) would insist on lowering the tone by writing about the washing-up. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2022-06-23 05:00:38 UTC ]
News tagged with: #literary landscape #margaret drabble #judging panel #poetry collection #costa book

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Shock ending: how the Costa book awards changed reading – and pitted husband against wife'


Shock ending: how the Costa book awards changed reading – and pitted husband against wife

After 50 years, the prize has been scrapped. How did it change Britain’s literary landscape? And what happened at the awards when Margaret Drabble was seated next to Theresa May?Margaret Drabble was a bright young star with five novels to her name in 1971, when she was talked into joining her... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-06-23 05:00:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary landscape #margaret drabble #judging panel #poetry collection #costa book


Costa’s Book Award: Five Category Winners in the UK, One To Win Book of the Year

Now in line for the overall Costa Book of the Year award–to be announced January 30–the five Costa category winners include three titles from HarperCollins UK imprints. The post Costa’s Book Award: Five Category Winners in the UK, One To Win Book of the Year appeared first on Publishing... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #costa book #year appeared #book award #category winners


Costa Book Awards’ Category Winners Contend for Book of the Year

Ireland's Sebastian Barry, already a two-time Costa winner, may be on track again for the program's Book of the Year at the end of the month. The post Costa Book Awards’ Category Winners Contend for Book of the Year appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2017-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Exclusive: Read a new poem by National Book Award finalist Joan Wickersham.

In September, poet Joan Wickersham’s No Ship Sets Out To Be A Shipwreck will be published by Eastover Press. Lit Hub got a sneak peak, and we’re excited to share a new poem from the collection. According to the publisher, No Ship Sets Out To Be A Shipwreck is a poetic and philosophical... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-04-15 13:30:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #lit hub #sneak peak #national book award


A More Introspective End of the World: A Reading List of Quiet Apocalypse Books

Apocalypse brings to mind cataclysmic events, often involving Mad Max-esq fighting, cannibalism, and what horrors one must endure, or commit, to survive. I love such stories. I like to imagine that I would survive, thrive even, conveniently forgetting that my life of indoor pursuits, reading,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-05-25 12:26:54 UTC ]
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2023 Walter Dean Myers Awards: Life Changing Literature and Book Bans

The eighth annual ​Walter​ ​Awards ​Ceremony​ and Symposium took place as a hybrid event at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, D.C., and online on March 17. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-21 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Abrupt End to U.K.' s Costa Awards

In a surprise announcement June 10, Costa Coffee announced it was immediately ending its support for the second most prestigious book award—after the Booker—in the U.K. and Ireland. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-06-13 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In England, Costa Book Awards Is Closing After 50 Years

Taking many in the British publishing community by surprise, Costa Book Awards is discontinuing its long-running program. The post In England, Costa Book Awards Is Closing After 50 Years appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-06-10 19:12:26 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #british publishing #costa book


Costa book awards scrapped suddenly after 50 years

Coffee company announces ‘difficult decision’ to end the prizes, sparking a chorus of disappointment across the books industryThe Costa book awards, after running for half a century, have been abruptly scrapped. The coffee shop chain has said the 2021 awards, which were announced in February... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-06-10 13:00:18 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #costa coffee #book awards #difficult decision #books written #costa book


After 50 years, the Costa Book Awards are over.

The Costa Book Awards, which was founded in 1971 and known as the Whitbread Book Awards until 2005, is no more. Today, Costa Coffee announced that the 2021 Costa Book Awards, held in February 2022, would be the last iteration of the prizes. “We are incredibly proud to have played a part in... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-10 12:34:21 UTC ]
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In London, Poet Hannah Lowe Wins the Costa Book of the Year Award

The 50-year-old Costa Book Awards' 2021 cycle has chosen a book of sonnets called 'The Kids' by Hannah Lowe as its top honor. The post In London, Poet Hannah Lowe Wins the Costa Book of the Year Award appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-02-02 01:18:04 UTC ]
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In London, Costa Book Awards Names Its Category Winners

The Costa Book Awards program, in its 50th year, names winners in five categories: first novel, novel, biography, poetry, children's books. The post In London, Costa Book Awards Names Its Category Winners appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-01-05 00:15:29 UTC ]
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PRH dominates Costa Book Awards as Azumah Nelson and Fuller win categories

Penguin Random House has dominated the Costa Book Awards 2021 category winners, with two Viking authors among the victors—Caleb Azumah Nelson and John Preston—along with Fig Tree's Claire Fuller and Manjeet Mann, with only Bloodaxe Books' Hannah Lowe preventing a clean sweep.   Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-04 12:23:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fig tree #bloodaxe books #clean sweep #azumah nelson #penguin random house #costa book


Chakrabarti, Barr and Murray to judge Costa Book Awards

BBC News journalist and broadcaster Reeta Chakrabarti is to chair the panel of judges selecting the Costa Book of the Year. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-20 21:51:05 UTC ]
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The United Kingdom’s Costa Book Awards Name Five Shortlists

With the 'book of the year' winner to be announced on February 1, the Costa Book Awards will name its 2021 winner in 2022. The post The United Kingdom’s Costa Book Awards Name Five Shortlists appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-11-23 19:51:12 UTC ]
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Burton and Halls join Costa Book Awards judges

Novelist Jessie Burton and children's book author Smriti Halls are among the judges confirmed for the 2021 Costa Book Awards, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-08-31 23:06:55 UTC ]
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Sheikh Zayed Book Award Winner Iman Mersal: ‘Reading the Past’

A lost novelist, 'her whispering voice, fleeing depression,' led this Egyptian poet to one of the biggest literary prizes in the world. The post Sheikh Zayed Book Award Winner Iman Mersal: ‘Reading the Past’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-05-25 18:35:10 UTC ]
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Monique Roffey Wins the UK’s Costa 2020 Book of the Year Award

Roffey's book, based on a Taino legend, is set in 1976 on the Caribbean island of Black Conch. Tessa Sheridan has won the Short Story Award. The post Monique Roffey Wins the UK’s Costa 2020 Book of the Year Award appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-01-26 21:18:00 UTC ]
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Costa Book Awards Names Its Three Short Story Finalists

Three writers who work in literature and screenwriting are behind the shortlisted trio of works in the Costa honors' 2020 cycle. The post Costa Book Awards Names Its Three Short Story Finalists appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-01-13 22:04:22 UTC ]
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UK: The 49th Costa Book Awards Name Category Winners

The five category winners of the 2020 Costa Book Awards are announced, with the 'book of the year' honor to come later this month. The post UK: The 49th Costa Book Awards Name Category Winners appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-01-05 13:59:16 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post uk #category winners #costa book