The Sydney Morning Herald has named Alice Bishop its Best Young Australian Novelist for 2020, with two other writers as runners up.
Three collections of short stories by young Australian writers have been chosen, with Alice Bishop (A Constant Hum) and Joey Bui (Lucky Ticket) recognised for their first books while Josephine Rowe’s Here Until August is her fourth.
This is the 24th year of the Herald’s awards, which were established by former literary editor Susan Wyndham to recognise emerging writing talent. The awards are open to writers aged 35 and younger at the time of publication of their nominated books.
This year, thanks to the Copyright Agency, Alice Bishop will receive $8000, with Joey Bui and Josephine Rowe each receiving $1000.
The judges were award-winning poet, memoirist and short-story writer Maxine Beneba Clarke, novelist and performance artist Fiona McGregor, and The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age Books editor Jason Steger.
The judges also chose two books for honourable mention: Hitch by Kathryn Hind and Listurbia by Carly Cappielli.
Alice Bishop
Alice Bishop’s collection of short stories, A Constant Hum, is set in the aftermath of Black Saturday, February 7, 2009, when 173 people died in Victoria. She says: “That hum’s going to be there for many many more years. I hope there’s a little bit of hope in A Constant Hum that it can make you a more resilient person, if you’re lucky.”
The judges commented: “The weaving of abstract prose-poetry with traditional character-driven stories render A Constant Hum at once restrained and emotional … Bishop’s flawless, expansive technique and startling turn of phrase herald a debut fiction writer of extraordinary depth and capability.”
Josephine Rowe
Josephine Rowe’s Here Until August, her third collection of short stories, took seven years to write.
The judges said Rowe’s stories were poetic, tender and nuanced, and “cut across geographic and emotional borders. Here Until August introduces us to a complex cast of characters, all perched on the precipice of personal or societal change. Accomplished and stylistically sure, the short fiction in this collection cements Rowe’s reputation as a must-read master of the short form.”
The stories are set around the world: Western Australia, Montreal, unnamed towns and cities in America, and Melbourne.
Joey Bui
Joey Bui’s Lucky Ticket is a collection of stories around a theme of war or displacement. The judges said it was a collection filled with the grit, atmosphere and smells of the streets – of city and rural people living hand to mouth.
“At times devastating, and at others humorous, Lucky Ticket traverses the full range of human emotion. Bui’s characters are loveable and infuriating, generous and selfish, but always relatable.”
For more information:
Miranda Ward
Communications Manager
Miward@nine.com.au
Monday, May 4, 2020
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