Jhalak Prize 2023 shortlists announced

The shortlists for the UK’s Jhalak Prize and the Jhalak Children’s and Young Adult Prize for Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) writers have been announced.

The titles shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize are:

• None of the Above (Travis Alabanza, Canongate)
• Takeaway (Angela Hui, Trapeze)
• The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho (Paterson Joseph, Dialogue)
• When We Were Birds (Ayanna Lloyd Banwo, Hamish Hamilton)
• I’m a Fan (Sheena Patel, Rough Trade Books)
• Hiding to Nothing (Anita Pati, Liverpool University Press)

The titles shortlisted for the Jhalak Children’s and Young Adult Prize are:

• In Our Hands (Lucy Farfort, Tate)
• When Our Worlds Collided (Danielle Jawando, S&S)
• Mia And The Lightcasters (Janelle McCurdy, illus by Ana Latese, Faber)
• Ellie Pillai Is Brown (Christine Pillainayagam, Faber)
• Rebel Skies (Ann Sei Lin, Walker)
• Dadaji’s Paintbrush (Rashmi Sirdeshpande, illus by Ruchi Mhasane, Andersen) 

This is the seventh year of the Jhalak Prize, which was launched in 2016 to recognise ‘authors who feel that their work is often marginalised unless it fulfils a romantic fetishisation of their cultural heritage’. The prize was established after the 2015 Writing the Future report found that the best chance of publication for writers of colour was to write literary fiction conforming to a stereotypical view of their communities.

The winners, who each receive £1000 (A$1852), will be announced on 25 May. Last year’s Jhalak Prize winner was Sabba Khan for The Roles We Play (Myriad), while YA author Maisie Chan won the Jhalak Children’s and Young Adult Prize for Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths (illus by Anh Cao, Piccadilly Press).

Category: Awards International news