Congratulations to Alys Conran whose debut novel Pigeon is one of 12 books by writers aged 39 and under longlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize 2017.
'An exquisite novel by a great new writer' – M.J Hyland
Two New York Times bestsellers and the winner of the 2016 Waterstones Book of the Year are among 12 books on the longlist for the £30,000 International Dylan Thomas Prize in partnership with Swansea University.
Awarded for the best published literary work in the English language, written by an author aged 39 or under, the prize is named after the Swansea-born writer, Dylan Thomas, and celebrates his 39 years of creativity and productivity. One of the most influential, internationally-renowned writers of the mid-twentieth century, the prize invokes his memory to support the writers of today and nurture the talents of tomorrow.
Launched in 2006, The International Dylan Thomas Prize is the largest literary prize in the world for young writers.
This year’s longlist of 12 books comprises of: six novels, four short story collections, and two volumes of poetry.
About Pigeon
An incongruous ice-cream van lurches up into the Welsh hills through the hail, pursued by a boy and girl who chase it into their own dark make-believe world, and unfurl in their compelling voices a tale which ultimately breaks out of childhood and echoes across the years.
Pigeon is the tragic, occasionally hilarious and ultimately intense story of a childhood friendship and how it's torn apart, a story of guilt, silence and the loss of innocence, and a story about the kind of love which may survive it all.
A Welsh language adaptation of Pigeon (Pijin by Sian Northey) was published at the same time as the English original.
Alys Conran will be appearing at the Edinburgh Festival this August.
Praise for Pigeon:
'Might have been authoured by Faulkner... just as imaginatively capacious... Never overwrought, rather pitch-perfect.' – Omar Sabbagh, New Welsh Review
'...a quite brilliant and empathetic writer of both narrative and character. Pigeon is an extraordinary book about people, place, language and culture.'
– From the Margins
'...deceptively simple... throughly engaging... a timeless quality... I should like to recommend that the unpretentious prose of Pigeon be read primarily for its humaneness and subtle poetical spirit.' – Wales Arts Review
About the Author:
Alys Conran's short fiction has been placed in the Bristol Short Story Prize and the Manchester Fiction Prize. She completed her MA Creative Writing at Manchester, graduating with distinction, and is currently, with the support of a scholarship, working on a second novel about the legacy of the Raj in contemporary British life. She has read her fiction and poetry at The Hay Festival and on Radio Four and her work is to be found in magazines including Stand and The Manchester Review, and also in anthologies by The Bristol Review of Books, Parthian, The Camden Trust and Honno. She also publishes poetry, creative non-fiction, creative essays and literary translations. Originally from north Wales, she spent several years in Edinburgh and Barcelona before returning to the area to live and write, and speaks fluent Spanish and Catalan as well as Welsh and English. She has also trained and practiced in Youth and Community Work, and has developed projects to increase access to creative writing and reading. She is now lecturer in creative writing at Bangor. @alysconran
Buy Pigeon from the Parthian Bookshop
