Another one of those lists - this one's Irish!

[Cailin]

Shortlist for the Irish Book of the Decade Award:

The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor
Star of the Sea by Joseph O'Connor
Winterwood by Patrick McCabe
Paula Spencer by Roddy Doyle
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne
Tenderwire by Claire Kilroy
The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy
Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
Molly Fox's Birthday by Deirdre Madden
Stepping Stones by Dennis O'Driscoll and Seamus Heaney
Let The Great World Spin by Colm McCann
The Builders by Frank McDonald and Kathy Sheridan
This Charming Man by Marian Keyes
The Speckled People by Hugo Hamilton
The New Policeman by Kate Thompson
Memoir by John McGahern
A Long Long Way by Sebastian Barry
The Pope's Children by David McWilliams
Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath
The Gathering by Anne Enright
Walk the Blue Fields by Claire Keegan
Should Have Got Off at Sydney Parade by Ross O'Carroll Kelly
The Truth Commissioner by David Parks
The Parish by Alice Taylor
Bog Child by Siobhan Dowd
Lessons in Heartbreak by Cathy Kelly
Forgive and Forget by Patricia Scanlan
The Lovers by John Connolly
It's a Long Way from Penny Apples by Bill Cullen
The Stolen Village by Des Ekin
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Yours, Faithfully by Sheila O'Flanagan
The Sea by John Banville
With My Lazy Eye by Julia Kelly
Connemara: Listening to the Wind by Tim Robinson
In the Woods by Tana French
Tatty by Christine Dwyer Hickey
A Secret History of the IRA by Ed Moloney
The Master by Colm Tóibín
There Are Little Kingdoms by Kevin Barry
In the Forest by Edna O'Brien
Keane by Roy Keane
Havoc in Its Third Year by Ronan Bennett
Judging Dev by Diarmaid Ferriter
Netherland by Joseph O'Neill
That They May Face The Rising Sun by John McGahern
PS I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy
Foolish Mortals by Jennifer Johnston

Opinions?

Unusually seems to incorporate many genres - from "chick lit" to sports biographies...

[Niamh]

There are some really good books in that list! Who is promoting the award? Do you have a link?

[Cailin]

It's from the Irish Times on the 14th of April - can't find the link at the mo:confused5:..... I think maybe it's the paper's own awards but I'm not sure.

Really surprised by the range of books on the list - it seems to incorporate all genres which I think makes a nice change from some of the more "literary" awards. That being said, I still don't understand the appeal of Cecilia Ahern!:yawnb:

[Niamh]

Neither do i!
I wonder if someone will take over the national book awards this year? that was founded by Hughes and Hughes and well... they're gone. (for now. Rumour has it Derek is reopening some of his stores. talking about a sneaky way to get out of your large debts. Get company into receivership and give someone else your debts to sort out. walk away scot free and set up again. )

[Cailin]

Isn't that the Irish way at the moment? I'm very cynical!!

It's the kids who collected all the tokens on Rice Krispies for the Hughes and Hughes books that I feel sorry for!:incazzato:;)

What do you reckon should win from that Irish Times list? I loved the Denis O'Driscoll book on Heaney...

[Niamh]

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Wonderful!

[Cailin]

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Wonderful!

Loved that too - saw the film for the first time last weekend and it left me disappointed.