I enjoyed reading through this year’s Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist and I believe it will be an extremely difficult decision for the judges to announce one winner on June 7th, 2017. Each novel is so distinct from the other and praise worthy in its own terms.
Both Stay with me by Ayobami Adebayo and The Power by Naomi Alderman revolve around life of women in the society they inhabit. While I think Stay with me has the most engaging plot among the lot, Alderman too is a wonderful storyteller who brings to life a fictional world where women rule. These two are the page-turners in this year’s shortlist. The literary merit is commendable in the fragmented narrative of the toxic marriage and life of Neve in First Love by Gwendoline Riley as well as in the stream of consciousness technique of writing in The Dark Circle by Linda Grant. Do Not Say we have Nothing by Madeliene Thien is ambitious in its scope and finely mixes the history of the Cultural revolution in China with the people for whom music runs in the blood. The Sport of Kings by C. E. Morgan is my least liked book in the list and is the sprawling history of the Forges, a wealthy white family in the South, steeped in patriarchy, racism and legacy.
Among the six, my choice for the winner is Linda Grant’s The Dark Circle. Thien’s novel is my second choice for the prize (even though I enjoyed Stay with me and First Love more) as it is a very insightful one and an important work in historical fiction. However it is Grant’s novel that moved me with her accurate depictions of human nature, how illness changes us and the medical history of a disease that was so deadly once, but now not given the same pedestal of importance.
Winner prediction for @baileysprize. Whom are you placing your bet on? Click To Tweet
You can read my reviews of the shortlisted books through the links below
1. Stay with me by Ayobami Adebayo – Deception, Marriage and Childlessness
2. The Power by Naomi Alderman – When Girls Rule the World
3. Do not Say We Have Nothing by Madeliene Thien – Ambitious, Musical and Historical
4. First Love by Gwendoline Riley – Minimal, Melancholic and Pensive
5. The Dark Circle by Linda Grant – An Emotionally Fulfilling Read
6. The Sport of Kings by C. E. Morgan – What is Wrong and Right with the Novel
This year is the last year for the prize is called as Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction. Next year onwards, Baileys is a part of a group of sponsors and the award will be named Women’s Prize for Fiction according to an announcement last week
Did you read any books in this year’s shortlist? Who do you think would be the winner?
Rooting for Stay With Me all the way!
Good luck to Ayobami. What a wonderfully crafted novel she has put forth
Ha! I guessed your choice for winner would be The Dark Circle
Haha. I think my excitement for the book was pretty much everywhere. No other prediction post has rooted for Grant and everyone is leaning towards Thien. So I am also thinking if I am the only one who enjoyed the book so much. Let’s see.
For you, I hope Grant wins
Haha. Thanks for that. 🙂
I haven’t gotten to any of the books on the shortlist yet, but it’s been fun reading other people’s reviews and predictions. I certainly remember how enthusiastic your review of The Dark Circle was. 🙂
Haha. Yes I was pretty amazed by The Dark Circle. May the best one win today.
I still have Stay With Me on loan from the library and need to get to it soon!
I hope you will get it in your hands soon. I am curious about what you think