Crook’s Corner Café and Bar in Chapel Hill, N.C., announced the 12 books named to the Crook’s Corner Book Prize Longlist of exceptional debut novels set in the American South. The first year for the book prize, the selection was chosen from 68 submissions by the Crook’s Corner Book Prize Foundation. The foundation is comprised of authors, editors, publishers, publicists, and voracious readers. The prize is open to both self-published and traditionally published authors.
“It was exciting to find so many great books—several of them from independent publishers (even micro-publishers)—emerging from our reading,” said Anna Hayes, founder and president of the Crook’s Corner Book Prize Foundation. The prize, inspired by café awards in Paris, will reward the winner with $1000, as well as a daily complimentary glass of wine at the restaurant for one year.
Jamie Fiocco, owner of Flyleaf Books and president of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance, will debut a display showcasing the chosen books in his bookstore. He encourages other independent booksellers to do the same. “The Crook’s Corner Book Prize Longlist is a great example of what independent booksellers have been doing for years: finding top-quality reading experiences, regardless of the book’s origin—small or large publisher. Readers trust the rich literary history of the South to deliver a sense of place and great characters; now this Prize lets readers learn about the cream of the crop of new storytellers.”
Best-selling author Jill McCorkle (Life After Life, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill), will choose the winning novel from four finalists. The Crook’s Corner Book Prize Foundation will announce the four finalists, chosen by the foundation, on November 15, 2013.
Below are the longlist titles:
LEAVING TUSCALOOSA, Walter Bennett (Fuze Publishing)
CODE OF THE FOREST, Jon Buchan (Joggling Board Press)
A LAND MORE KIND THAN HOME, Wiley Cash (William Morrow)
GREEN GOSPEL, L.C. Fiore (Livingston Press)
BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK, Ben Fountain (Ecco)
THE SILENCE OF BONAVENTURE ARROW, Rita Leganski (Harper Collins)
THE SECRETS OF MARY BOWSER, Lois Leveen (William Morrow)
THE TWELVE TRIBES OF HATTIE, Ayana Mathis (Knopf)
THE ENCHANTED LIFE OF ADAM HOPE, Rhonda Riley (Ecco)
GLOW, Jessica Maria Tuccelli (Viking/Penguin)
THE FAMILY FANG, Kevin Wilson (Harper Collins)
WASH, Margaret Wrinkle (Atlantic Monthly Press)
