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BBC News
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Neneh Cherry among shortlisted women for non-fiction prize
An MP, a palliative care doctor, and musician Neneh Cherry are among the authors shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Non-Fiction in Buffalo Stance singer wrote A Thousand Threads, a personal memoir which Kavita Puri, the chair of judges, called "exceptional and effortless".Yuan Yang, the MP for Woodley and Earley, wrote Private Revolutions: Coming of Age in a New China, while Oxford-based Dr Rachel Clarke wrote The Story of a Puri said the non-fiction works were "united by an unforgettable voice, rigour, and unique insight". The shortlist is rounded out by Chloe Dalton's Raising Hare, Clare Mulley's Agent Zo: The Untold Stories of Courageous WW2 Resistance Fighter Elzbieta Zawacka, and Helen Scales' What the Wild Sea Can Be: The Future of the World's Ocean. Ms Puri said: "It was such a joy to embrace such an eclectic mix of narratives by such insightful women writers - we are thrilled and immensely proud of our final shortlist."She said Cherry's memoir was a story of a "remarkable life and the many threads that made it". "This is a book about belonging, family, how we find our place in society and, of course, music," she said."It's a complex portrayal full of warmth, honesty and integrity, and how Neneh came to be who she is today." Ms Yang, a former journalist and economist, is the first ever Chinese-born MP in the UK. Her book is described by organisers as a "portrait of modern China told through the lives of four ordinary women, each striving for a better future in an unequal society".Ms Puri called it "eye-opening, beautifully written and carefully researched".Dr Clarke's book, which recounts the story of a heart transplant, was described by panel judge and academic Dr Elizabeth-Jane Burnett as "meticulously researched" and moving "effortlessly between disciplines". Chloe Dalton's book is a "beautiful meditation on the interactions between the human and the natural world", according to novelist and critic Elizabeth Dalton, who is also a political adviser and foreign policy specialist, wrote of rescuing a leveret during Clare Mulley's biography is about an unsung World War Two resistance fighter from Poland. Writer and broadcaster Dr Leah Broad said it was "masterfully written", "phenomenally well researched" and a "window into World War Two stories that aren't often told".Helen Scales, a marine biologist, wrote a "heartfelt exploration of the deep sea", according to fellow author Emma Gannon. The Women's Prize for Fiction was launched in 1996, with the Non-Fiction Prize launched last winner will be announced on 12 June and receive a cheque for £30,000. You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
The Guardian
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Yuan Yang, Neneh Cherry and Rachel Clarke shortlisted for Women's prize for nonfiction
The Buffalo Stance singer Neneh Cherry, Labour MP Yuan Yang and the doctor Rachel Clarke have been shortlisted for this year's Women's prize for nonfiction. Foreign policy expert Chloe Dalton, marine biologist Helen Scales and biographer Clare Mulley also remain in contention for the £30,000 prize. A Thousand Threads by Neneh Cherry (Vintage) The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke (Abacus) Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (Canongate) Agent Zo by Clare Mulley (Weidenfeld) What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales (Atlantic) Private Revolutions by Yuan Yang (Bloomsbury) 'Included in our list are narratives that honour the natural world and its bond with humanity, meticulously researched stories of women challenging power and books that illuminate complex subjects with authority, nuance and originality,' said judging chair and journalist Kavita Puri. Swedish musician Cherry was shortlisted for her memoir A Thousand Threads. 'Hers is a vivid tale of love, family, chaos and a creative spirit passed through the generations,' wrote Fiona Sturges of the audiobook version in the Guardian. Yang was chosen for Private Revolutions, her portrait of modern China told through the lives of four young women. Yang 'has written an engrossing new book that meticulously reports on a country in the throes of change', wrote Mythili Rao in a Guardian review. The winner of the prize will be announced on 12 June along with the winner of its sister award, the Women's prize for fiction. The nonfiction counterpart was announced in 2023 after research found that only 35.5% of books awarded a nonfiction prize over the prior decade were written by women, across seven UK nonfiction prizes. The prize's inaugural award went to Naomi Klein for her book Doppelganger. Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you after newsletter promotion Clarke was shortlisted this year for The Story of a Heart, in which she sets the story of two children connected by a heart transplant against the history of heart surgery. 'While there is much to be gleaned here about the minutiae of medical inventions and procedures, Clarke never loses sight of the human impact,' wrote Sturges in her Guardian review of the book. Dalton, who spent more than a decade working in parliament and the Foreign Office, was picked for her debut book Raising Hare, about rescuing a leveret during the pandemic. 'This is a sustained and patient attempt to cross the species abyss, and to see the world through the hare's eyes,' wrote Edward Posnett in the Guardian. 'It possesses a dream-like quality, and often reads as a fable of metamorphosis.' The shortlist is completed by Scales' What the Wild Sea Can Be, about the future of the ocean, and Mulley's Agent Zo, about Polish second world war resistance fighter Elżbieta Zawacka. 'These books will stay with you long after they have been read, for their outstanding prose, craftsmanship and what they reveal about the human condition and our world,' said Puri. Along with the six shortlisted books, titles longlisted for this year's prize were Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum, Embers of the Hands by Eleanor Barraclough, The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor, Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller, By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle, Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux, The Peepshow by Kate Summerscale, Sister in Law by Harriet Wistrich and Tracker by Alexis Wright. Puri whittled down the longlist with fellow judges Leah Broad, Elizabeth Buchan, Elizabeth-Jane Burnett and Emma Gannon. 'It was such a joy to embrace such an eclectic mix of narratives by such insightful women writers,' said Puri. This year's prize was open to books published in the UK between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. The prize is sponsored by online genealogy service Findmypast, and says it is actively seeking a second sponsor. To browse all of the books on the Women's prize for nonfiction 2025 shortlist visit Delivery charges may apply.
The Guardian
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Neneh Cherry and Anne Applebaum longlisted for Women's prize for nonfiction
The Buffalo Stance singer Neneh Cherry, historian Anne Applebaum and Labour MP Yuan Yang are among those longlisted for the Women's prize for nonfiction. 16 authors, 11 of whom are British, are in contention for this year's £30,000 prize, which was launched last year to redress the gender imbalance in nonfiction prizes in the UK. Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum (Allen Lane) Embers of the Hands by Eleanor Barraclough (Profile) The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor (Allen Lane) A Thousand Threads by Neneh Cherry (Vintage) The Story of A Heart by Rachel Clarke (Abacus) Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (Canongate) Ootlin by Jenni Fagan (Hutchinson Heinemann) Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller (Pushkin) Agent Zo by Clare Mulley (Weidenfeld) By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle (William Collins) Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux (Faber) What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales (Atlantic) The Peepshow by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury) Sister in Law by Harriet Wistrich (Transworld) Tracker by Alexis Wright (And Other Stories) Private Revolutions by Yuan Yang (Bloomsbury) The longlisted titles 'boast so many different disciplines and genres', said journalist Kavita Puri, who is this year's judging chair. 'What unites them all is the quality of the writing, the authority of the voice and the originality of their storytelling, and just the depth and incisiveness of the research.' Cherry was longlisted for her memoir A Thousand Threads, while Yang was chosen for Private Revolutions, her portrait of modern China told through the lives of four young women. Applebaum appears on the list for Autocracy, Inc., which explores the kleptocratic financial structures that underlie autocracies. While the selected books are 'all quite different', said Puri, themes that emerged were 'power and control – how it's used, how it's abused', injustice, human connections 'with each other, but also the natural world' and climate change. There are also books featuring 'perspectives that have been overlooked', said Puri, including Indigenous voices, such as By the Fire We Carry by Native American activist Rebecca Nagle which looks at the 'battles of the Muscogee people', while Tracker by Australian writer Alexis Wright is a 'very personal' story of an Indigenous Australian leader. Other 'striking personal stories' include Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, about her experience growing up in care, and The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke, 'an exquisite story about one family giving the heart of their child, so that another can live, and the wonder of science and medicine'. The shortlist of six books will be announced on 26 March, with the winner revealed on 12 June, alongside the winner of the fiction prize, which turns 30 this year. Also on the longlist are What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales, Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux, Embers of the Hands by Eleanor Barraclough, The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor, Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton, Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller, Agent Zo by Clare Mulley, The Peepshow by Kate Summerscale and Sister in Law by Harriet Wistrich. Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you after newsletter promotion The nonfiction prize was announced in 2023 following research which found that only 35.5% of books awarded a nonfiction prize over the prior decade were written by women, across seven UK nonfiction prizes. Given that 'female writers in the nonfiction area don't do as well' as their male counterparts in terms of book advances and newspaper coverage, Puri sees this prize as an opportunity to 'elevate brilliant female writing in a whole array of genres'. Women's perspectives on the 'most pressing' issues of the day 'need to be heard', she added. 'So there is a huge need for this prize today'. This year's prize was open to books published in the UK between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. Alongside Puri on the judging panel are the writers Leah Broad, Elizabeth Buchan, Elizabeth-Jane Burnett and Emma Gannon. The inaugural nonfiction prize was won by Naomi Klein for her book Doppelganger.
