The longlist for the inaugural James Patterson and Bookshop.org Prize has been revealed, with 10 authors in contention for the award given to a debut English-language book.
Lucas Schaefer made the longlist for The Slip, which won the Kirkus Prize and is shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize for the best debut book in any genre.
Virginia Evans’ bestseller, The Correspondent, was longlisted for the award, alongside Sarah Aziza’s The Hollow Half, Venessa Vida Kelley’s When the Tides Held the Moon, Daria Lavelle’s Aftertaste, and Joss Richard’s It’s Different This Time.
Also nominated for the prize were Samantha Schoech for My Mother’s Boyfriends, Mandi Fugate Sheffel for The Nature of Pain, Milo Todd for The Lilac People, and Christina Rivera for My Oceans.
The establishment of the award was announced last November. It’s a collaboration between prolific novelist Patterson and Bookshop.org, the online marketplace that allows consumers to select an independent bookstore to profit from their purchases. Profits from customers who do not to select a particular store are divided among the indie retailers that partner with the marketplace.
Nominations for the prize, which comes with a cash award of $15,000, are selected by independent booksellers across the U.S. The shortlist for the award will be unveiled on March 16, and the winner announced on April 6, Independent Bookstore Day.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
