If You’re Tired of Not Seeing the Books You Liked on Prize-Winning Lists… VOTE!

I often find the lists of nominees and winners for book prizes like the Booker or Pulitzer to be somewhat mystifying – much like Oscar or Golden Globe lists… I read rather a lot, and am always amazed at the difficulty I have identifying the vast majority of titles on said lists. I often wonder where those books came from or who brought them to the attention of the prize-selection folks, or – more importantly – why the ones I thought were major new works never seem to list… Well, this year I’m going to do something about that – I’ve learned of a prize list sponsored by The Guardian and WE, regular readers that we are, can vote for the books that will win!

All you have to do is visit here, and select two books from the massive list of choices. Massive, yes, but once again I struggled to find multiple books that I knew, let alone loved, on it, I might add… My first vote was obviously The Summer That Melted Everything, which I’ve already raved about on here – and I’m writing to encourage you to vote for it as well, either because you also loved it or because you trust my judgment (teehee). If you’re curious, my second was Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel, another extraordinary book but one I’ve not reviewed (I can’t write long reviews on everything I read and enjoy or I’d never have time to read!). Before you vote, please pay heed to the following instructions: you vote in the comment section on the site and to get there you must sign in/register; you must vote for two books by two different publishers; you should use the word “vote” somewhere in your comment; and you must include at least one 100-word or more review for one of the books for which you vote. Voting is open in the United Kingdom until August 14; in the United States it closes August 13.