Several Australian writers are on the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award Longlist including newer names such as MJ Hyland for This Is How, Kalinda Ashton for The Danger Game and Craig Silvey for Jasper Jones alongside Alex Miller, David Malouf, Peter Carey and other familiar faces.
The longlist is particularly long with 162 novels from 43 countries because nominations come from libraries around the world including the State Library of Victoria and Australian National Library as well as institutions in Denmark, India and Jamaica. It brings books to international prominence and always features some unconventional selections.
Each library includes comments on the book they’ve nominated. Silvey’s Jasper Jones was called “Brilliant, whimsical and heartbreaking with a ‘mockingbird’ feel” while Carey’s Parrot and Olivier in America received a low-key assessment: “An entertaining and somewhat comic romp through Georgian England, revolutionary France and America. A migrant’s tale.”
The award’s shortlist is announced on 12th April 2011.