I was delighted to chair an event in celebration of the Women’s Prize at The Observer last week. We had two judges, Cariad Lloyd from the fiction prize and Thangam Debbonaire, chair of the non-fiction prize; we had three authors, broadcaster Lyse Doucet, shortlisted for the nonfiction prize for The Finest Hotel in Kabul; Jane Rogoyska, shortlisted for Hotel Exile; and from team fiction Rozie Kelly, for her debut novel Kingfisher. You could say it was a night of poachers and gamekeepers, but for the fact it was all so supportive and amenable. Comedian and actor Cariad, whose podcast Weirdos Book Club is a big hit, spoke of her shock, and frankly not a little initial dismay, at receiving huge boxes of books, which she hid under her bed until she could face them. A joke, but as with all the best jokes revealing something serious underneath: a sense of responsibility, given the time and effort writers put into their work. Thangam championed the nonfiction prize, first awarded in 2024: go into any bookshop, she said, and count the balance between male and female authors of nonfiction and you’ll understand that a balance needs redressing. We had a question from the audience as to whether or how much AI would change writing and publishing. For my money, that was answered simply by listening to our three authors delineate the the curiosity, hard work and passion they put into the strange, compelling – and often years-long – process of writing a book. As to who the winners of each prize will be: mark your diary for 11 June. You’ve got 12 terrific books to get through before then.
