First Warwick Prize for Writing shortlist released

The shortlist for the 2009 Warwick Prize for Writing was announced last Friday, featuring the six authors who will compete for the £50,000 prize.

The themes revolve around the contest’s main topic “complexity” and cover global political corruption, female psychology, 20th century music, scientific theories on religion and a Spanish literary fiction puzzle.

Commenting on the competition, China Miéville said: “Working through a longlist of such quality and variety, selecting a few excellent books from so many, has been exactly the kind of agonised pleasure you’d think.

“Every one of the titles on this shortlist is here because all the judges agreed that it is doing something new, doing something complex, and doing them brilliantly.”

The nominees for the prize include diverse literary creations: Lisa Appignanesi’s_ Mad, Bad and Sad: A History of Women and the Mind Doctors from 1800_, Francisco Goldman’s _The Art of Political Murder: Who Killed Bishop Gerardi?_, Stuart A. Kauffman’s _Reinventing the Sacred_, Naomi Klein’s _The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism_, Alex Ross’s _The Rest is Noise: Listening to the 20th Century_ and Enrique Vila-Matas’ _Montano’s Malady_.

The panel of judges, lead by award-winning fantasy fiction writer China Mieville, will review the shortlist and choose the winner who will then receive the prize at an awards ceremony at Warwick University, due to take place on the 24th of February.

The winning prize not only includes the financial reward, but also an opportunity to take up a short placement at Warwick.

This is the first year the prize will be awarded, but it will continue as a biennial event. It is part of the University’s Vision 2015, aimed at enhancing Warwick’s international reputation and consolidating its position in the top 50 universities in the world.

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