Bookstack

I’m back on my library book tower building ways!!! This stack is #LiteraryFifteen inspired.

🏆 Ursula K. Le Guin
The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez
Arboreality by Rebecca Campbell
Drinking From Graveyard Wells by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu

🏆 Warwick Prize for Women in Translation
Your Wish Is My Command by Deena Mohamed
The Fawn by Magda Szabo
The Forbidden Notebook by Alba de Céspedes
What Have You Left Behind? by Bushra Al-Maqtari
Ti Amo by Hanne Ørstavik
A Line In The World: A Year On The North Sea Coast by Dorthe Nors

🏆 Aspen Words
What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez by Claire Jiménez

Friendly reminder that Literary Fifteen 2024 is live! The book is for the 2024 longlist (and more books are incoming).

🏆 Jhalak
The Secret Diaries Of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph
Onyeka And The Academy Of The Sun by Tolá Okogwu
I’m A Fan by Sheena Patel

🏆 Jhalak & OCM Bocas
When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo

🏆 NBA Translated Fiction
The Most Secret Memory Of Men by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr
Abyss by Pilar Quintana

🏆 Nebula & Ursula K. Le Guin
Spear by Nicola Griffith

🏆 Carol Shields
Brown Girls by Daphne Palasi Andreades

Leaning onto this stack are today’s purchases: The Antiquarian Sticker Book and The Botanist’s Sticker Anthology. Stickers intended to add that bit of art you need some days when you do not have it in you to draw or paint something yourself.

As for my Literary Fifteen status I’ve completed 8 out of 15 prompts. This stack would allow me to catch up on most of the prompts I have yet to read from: OCM Bocas (I’m working on OCM Bocas as I’m reading my way through Moon Witch Spide King by Marlon James. It is brutal as always but I’m enjoying being back with Sogolon and having James open a new world that deserves is own series in each chapter), Carol Shields, Jhalak, Ursula K. Le Guin.

AKO Caine I’m planning to read all the stories – just like last year – which are available through their website. It was a delight and exploration of different ways to tell a story.

For the Stella and JCB there are no books available for me so I’m guessing I will have to give up or figure out which one to buy. Any suggestions or disappointments?

Literary Fifteen 2024

A reading challenge sampling 15 literary awards and hopefully finding some of your best reads in 2024.

The prizes will take you to several places around the world and offers translated fiction, poetry, non-fiction, short stories, fantasy, political novels, queer lit and much more. The prompts & literary prizes:

1. Aspen Words – longlist is already here!!!

2. Dublin Literary Award

3. OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature

4. International Booker

5. Carol Shields Prize for Fiction

6. Jhalak Prize

7. Lambda Literary Award

8. Ignyte Awards

9. AKO Caine Prize for African Writing

10. The Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction

11. Polari Book Prize

12. JCB Prize for Fiction

13. National Book Award for Translated Fiction

14. Warwick Prize for Women in Translation

15. Award of your choice

Rules:
Read (or DNF) at least one story nominated for a literary award.

If you want more, read for 2 or more prizes. Or read 1 or more for a prize.

It doesn’t matter how much you read – any level of participation counts. Read as much or little as you want to – read because you want to.
PS. This is also a reminder to myself to not try to do it all even when you shouldn’t.

Which prize are you most looking forward to in 2024? Which prize would you pick for no 15? Curious to know even if you do not join the challenge!

OCM Bocas

2023 is the second year I’m running the reading challenge #LiteraryFifteen – a reading challenge that samples one book from 15 literary awards across the world.

One of my favourite prizes is OCM Bocas which focuses on Caribbean literary. OCM Bocas consistently delivers excellence and this year’s longlist is no different!!! OCM Bocas’ longlist feels like other prize’s perfect shortlists – is it the quality of the judges or authors? Who knows, but you are in for some excellent reading.

The longlist is divided into 3 categories – poetry, fiction and nonfiction – each awarded with a winner as well as an overall winner. This year the longlist covers five Caribbean countries.

Poetry: 

The Day-Breakers by Michael Fraser – 🇬🇩

Sonnets for Albert by Anthony Joseph – 🇹🇹 

de book of Joseph by Pamela Mordecai – 🇯🇲 

Fiction: 

Moon witch, spider king by Marlon James – 🇯🇲 

When we were birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo – 🇹🇹 

The island of forgetting by Jasmine Sealy – 🇧🇧 

Nonfiction:

Love the dark days by Ira Mathur – 🇹🇹 

Buyers beware: insurgency and consumption in Caribbean popular culture by Patricia Joan Saunders – 🇹🇹 

Diary of a recovering politician by Godfrey Smith – 🇧🇿 

The judges have given special mentions to two books of poetry – Border zone by John Agard and Narcissus by Andre Bagoo – and a book of nonfiction Clientism and democracy in Belize: from my hand to your by Dylan Vernon.

As always my focus will be the fiction category – I read zero nonfiction last year and poetry is still something I’m testing out. Of course I already own Moon with, spider king and I will restart it soon. I’ve also reserved When we were birds at the library, it should arrive early April. Once I’ve read these two I’ll order The island of forgetting. The reviews are really promising for all three books – as always when it comes to OCM Bocas. We have the honour of a strong and outspoken Caribbean Bookstagram community. They have judged the books as awesome. You are done – you can buy the books.

Would you go for poetry, fiction or nonfiction? Which book is calling your name?