This site is always open to new writing, as Margaret Atwood says, new ways of using this story transmission device which most people know as the Novel.
The World Book Night event recently opened our eyes to some new up-coming literary talent, and some of these new writers need to be considered as potential candidates for the List of Novels you might want to read in your life-time if you get half the chance. This selection follows a BBC2 Culture Show special on 5 March 2011 with a judging panel which helped identify the 12 best new novelists in 2011. You can find an explanation of the selection criteria here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tv/2011/03/world-book-night-judges.shtml
Looking at all 12 of these novels, we’ve decided to concentrate on the best of the best, and ended up with the following first novels which are clear contenders, with all seven having the whiff of becoming timeless cult classics (we like bold statements on this site):
- Ned Beauman – Boxer Beetle,
- Adam Haslett – Union Atlantic,
- Samantha Harvey – The Wilderness,
- Rebecca Hunt – Mr Chartwell,
- Stephen Kelman – Pigeon English,
- Anna Richards – Little Gods,
- Evie Wyld – After the Fire, a Still Small Voice.
It is now up to you to decide which one of these seven books should end up on our List. One of these first novels, with the most votes by 26 April, could end up being considered a timeless classic.
This poll is now closed – you can have a look at the results by clicking on “Results” in the word-cloud.