Mercy Among the Children
Mercy Among the Children by David Adams Richards What did it win? Giller Prize 2000 (co-winner) What’s it all about? The miserable life of a Miramichi man puts his childhood vow to never harm another...
View ArticleNo Great Mischief
No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod What did it win? Trillium Book Award 1999, International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 1999 What’s it all about? An orthodontist meditates on his family’s history....
View ArticleTo Say Nothing of the Dog
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis What did it win? Hugo Award 1999 What’s it all about? A pair of 21st century time travelers are sent back to Victorian England to repair a fault in the...
View ArticleAtonement
Atonement by Ian McEwan What did it win? W. H. Smith Literary Award 2002 What’s it all about? Thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis falsely accuses a young man of rape. She spends the rest of her life...
View ArticleBoswell’s Presumptuous Task
Boswell’s Presumptuous Task by Adam Sisman What did it win? National Book Critics Circle Award 2002 What’s it all about? Boswell’s struggle to write the Life of Johnson. Was it really any good? It’s...
View ArticleThe Corrections
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen What did it win? National Book Award 2002 What’s it all about? A disintegrating mid-West family drags itself together for one last Christmas. Was it really any good?...
View ArticleEunoia
Eunoia by Christian Bök What did it win? Griffin Poetry Prize 2002 What’s it all about? A poem in five chapters, with each chapter making use of only one vowel. Was it really any good? For what it is ....
View ArticleThe Gathering
The Gathering by Anne Enright What did it win? Man Booker Prize 2007 What’s it all about? Her brother’s suicide leads an Irish woman to reflect upon her life. Was it really any good? Well-written, but...
View ArticleVernon God Little
Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre What did it win? Man Booker Prize 2003 What’s it all about? A fifteen-year-old Texan boy is suspected of being involved in a mass killing. He runs away to Mexico, but is...
View ArticleThe Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale What did it win? Samuel Johnson Prize 2008 What’s it all about? A London detective is called in to investigate a murder at an English country house. He...
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