Jones, Mellor win Historical Novel Prize

Gail Jones has won the $50,000 ARA Historical Novel Prize in the adult category for Salonika Burning (Text), while Amelia Mellor has won the $30,000 children and young adult (CYA) category for The Bookseller’s Apprentice (Affirm).

Prize chair and Historical Novel Society Australasia program director Elisabeth Storrs said the ‘exceptional narratives selected for this year’s ARA Historical Novel Prize underscore the vastness and intricacy of our shared human journey’. ‘Drawing from the tapestries of our collective past, both Salonika Burning and The Bookseller’s Apprentice shine a light on the complexities of our human spirit, the fervor of resilience, and the delicate weave of friendships amidst societal upheavals,’ said Storrs.

The winners of both the adult and CYA categories were chosen from shortlists announced in September, with all four shortlistees each receiving $5000. This year’s judging panel includes Robert Gott, Renée Otmar and Lucy Treloar for the adult category, as well as Christopher Cheng, Craig Cormick and Lauren Keenan for the CYA category.

The ARA Historical Novel Prize was established in 2020 and is open to historical fiction books from Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Last year’s winners of the ARA Historical Novel Prize were Tom Keneally for Corporal Hitler’s Pistol (Penguin) and Katrina Nannestad for Rabbit, Soldier, Angel, Thief (ABC Books).

More information about the prize is available on the HNSA website.

Category: Awards Local news