I haven’t posted on the Miles Franklin Award since 2019, and I didn’t post this year’s longlist when it came out last month, but, despite my woeful record – I’ve yet to read any on the longlist – I felt it was about time I returned to Australia’s best known literary award.

Unfortunately, I was driving in the back blocks of northeast Victoria when the announcement was made, with no Internet connection in our room overnight. We have landed in civilisation – hmmm – depending on you definition, and are once more connected! I thought I’d start by sharing the longlist:

The longlist

• Aravind Adiga’s Amnesty (Lisa’s review)
• Robbie Arnott’s The rain heron
• Daniel Davis Wood’s At the edge of the solid world
• Gail Jones’ Our shadows
• Sofie Laguna’s Infinite Splendours (on my TBR and will definitely be read this year)
• Amanda Lohrey’s The Labyrinth (Lisa’s review)
• Laura Jean Mckay’s The animals in that country (my, I wish I’d read this already, given its popularity on awards lists)
• Andrew Pippos’ Lucky’s
• Mirandi Riwoe’s Stone sky, gold mountain (on my TBR)
• Philip Salom’s The fifth season (on my TBR) (Lisa’s review)
• Nardi Simpson’s Song of the crocodile ((on my TBR and will definitely be read this year)
• Madeleine Watts’ The inland sea

The judges describe the spread as “‘a rich mix of well-established, early career and debut novelists whose work ranges from historical fiction to fabulism and psychologism”.

And now, the shortlist:

• Aravind Adiga’s Amnesty
• Robbie Arnott’s The rain heron
• Daniel Davis Wood’s At the edge of the solid world
• Amanda Lohrey’s The Labyrinth
• Andrew Pippos’ Lucky’s
• Madeleine Watts’ The inland sea

Some random observations:

• Two of the authors – Adiga and Wood – are not Australian-born or based, but meet the award’s criteria because their subject matter is Australian (that is, they present ‘Australian life in any of its phases’). Adiga won the Booker Prize in 2008 with The white tiger, and Wood is apparently the founder and publisher of Splice, a small UK-based press.
• None of these books are on my TBR pile – wah – though I have been wanting to read Lohrey so this might be the impetus I need.
• There appears to be less diversity in terms of author background, though Adiga is Indian.
• There are four women and two men, which is fine, particularly given the award has rebalanced the gender representation well over recent years.
• None of these authors have won the Award before, but two, Arnott and Lohrey, have been listed before.
• Two – Pippos and Watts – are debut novelists.
• Lisa (ANZLitLovers) will be happy as she was mightily impressed with Lohrey’s Labyrinth (see her review above).

Each of the shortlisted writers will receive $5000 from the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund, with the winner receiving $60,000 prize.

The chair of the judging panel, Richard Neville, said

‘In various ways each of this year’s shortlisted books investigate destructive loss: of loved ones, freedom, self and the environment … There is, of course, beauty and joy to be found, and decency and hope, largely through the embrace of community but, as the shortlist reminds us, often community is no match for more powerful forces.’

This year’s judges comprise, as always, continuing judges and new ones, providing I think a good mix of experience and fresh ideas: Richard Neville (State Library of NSW), author and activist Sisonke Msimang, and critics Melinda Harvey, Bernadette Brennan and James Ley.

The winner will be announced on 15 July.

And, for a bit of fun, we saw this on a school notice board as we drove by today:

I always knock on the fridge door just in case salad’s dressing. (Eltham Primary School) 

What do you think – of the shortlist, I mean!?