The Carol Shields Prize Longlist 

I'd love to see Birnam Wood win, it was a top favourite read of mine last year. I've just finished Brotherless Night too. I didn't realise it was longlisted for this prize as well. It's my favourite of the 4 from the Women's Prize longlist that I've read so far, brilliantly written. I did borrow it from the library last year but had already read enough of the brutality of the times in 'Lanka in "Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens" that I couldn't face it until now. There is a lot to process in it. Not sure if I'll read from this longlist as well as the other ones I'm doing but always great to hear your views. Just started Praiseworthy and loving it.

Great haircut Scott 👍The only one on the list I’ve read is Birnam Wood and it was great. It was my number 2 book of 2023. ( Deluge by Stephen Markley was number 1) Brotherless Night sounds the most interesting. Anything that includes medicine/ human rights/ women & war… is going to peak my interest. Oh I’ve just finished I Have Some Questions For You ( forgot it was on list!) It was 3 stars. Ok mystery thriller but not Carol Sheilds standard.

thanks again scott.

I loved Birnam Wood. It was one of my best books last year. I find that it’s quite polarizing. I don’t run into too many who loved it was much as I did. You’ve described it perfectly - it’s intelligent and very original. Cattan is the kind of writer who makes me feel like my writing ambitions are utterly hopeless. Milk and Homey was one of those books that irritated me with all its pre-pub ubiquity. Probably not the best way to decide what to read, but I’m frequently guilty of it. Plus, I’m picky about my dystopia. When I read about smog in the blurb, all I I can think about is the Chicxulub Impactor that killed the dinosaurs. My son was obsessed with it for a minute and we had to watch the same RU-vid video every night. I read Loot last year too and enjoyed it, but it didn’t stay with me as long as I thought it would. I read and ARC and by the time I started seeing reviews after publication, I had forgotten key plot points. I wish The Future sounded more interesting to me (instead of weird). Michigan is my home state and I went to law school in Detroit. But it just sounds like an arbitrary setting. Pass. I Have Some Questions disappointed me. The Great Believers is a minor masterpiece that I still think about. There are so many details that just don’t belong in Questions - her extramarital affair being a huge one. I wouldn’t bother. Read The Great Believers.

The prize where North Americans can access the books. It's amazing! 😂 I wanted to see A History of Burning on the Booker so I was so excited to see it here. The Future won Canada Readd and is on this list so I'm gonna give it a try. (I feel so justified by your Land of Milk and Honey thoughts, I felt so bored by These Hills Are Gold that I began to hate it so I have a complete aversion to reading this one).

Thanks!

I'm reading Cocktail and so far really enjoying the stories - she has a way of taking you into a world easily. Very keen to get to Brotherless Night. I also picked up Chrysalis which I will read - it won the GG award so I am sure it will be worth it. Between Two Moons sounds really good too! People keep trying to convince me to read The Future but I just can't see my liking it at all - even if it did win Canada Reads 🙄 Reading I Have Some Questions for You now - it's good but I don't think you'd find it to be great. And Then She Fell is one that I am just LOVING but it's not on this prize list...gonna be reading all night and all day for the next month to get as many read as possible before short lists come in🤟 The short list for this prize is announced in less than two weeks - eek🤣

Im reading Burnam Wood at the moment, about 2/3 of the way through, and I am totally enthralled by it. I feel like it may well be a best of the year book for me. Quite a few of these titles intreague me. I hadnt heard of the Carol Shields prize before...but will be looking into it. Oh my! So many prizes! I already following and reading The Womans Prize and peripherally following The International Booker.🤯 How do you keep up with it all, Scott?! 😂

I’m excited about this long list. 😊💙

Totally agree with your reviews/thoughts so far on several of these books. In these prizes I like a smart story, something interesting and different such as A Council of Dolls. That tweaked my interest for sure. Also want to read A History Of Burning and Brotherless Night hoping at least one of these three or all of them will end up on the short list. And because of your thoughts on Birnam Wood I’ll add that one to my list. I’m also on the fence with reading The Future and I Have Some Questions For You. ANYWAY great video🇨🇦📚

I'm interested in several of these! I'm ashamed to say I haven't read Birnam Wood yet, but it's almost becoming one of those books I hear so much about, I almost feel I've absorbed some of the content 😛I did love The Luminaries though so absolutely must get to it in 2024. I purchased Brotherless Night and it's on the April TBR. Cocktail sounds appealing enough I think I can look past it being short stories (which I often struggle to consume). Have a great (probably Monday!) when you read this.

An interesting list. I really need to pick up Birnam Wood!

I’m so pleased to see Birnam Wood on a long list! I absolutely loved that book ☺️☺️

I'm currently reading Between Two Moons and Cocktail (I like short stories). I hope to get to several of these but I won't read the whole longlist. I absolutely loved Brotherless Night.

I feel the same about multigenerational sagas, good to know I am not alone :) Interesting mix of books. At this point I am interested in Brotherless Night and Cocktail (don't mind short stories). Attempted a sample of Birnam Wood and could not get into it, it read like a newspaper report somehow. Maybe will try again later.

I just bought Birnam Wood and Brotherless Night, so I will be reading them soon, but I love a multi-generational story, so add Coleman Hill, and my daughter is a ballerina, so I must add Dances… the rest I will probably skip.

I Have Some Questions For You was fine but not that special. Not comparable to Birnam Woods by any means. Interesting titles on this list but I'm already reading the Womens Prize for Fiction plus a handful of Stella longlist plus lusting after various titles on the International Booker list, so I can't possibly add this prize onto my list...or can i?

I really liked Between Two Moons, but I also really liked The Land of Milk and Honey!😂. I am not a big fan of Birnam Wood 🤷‍♀️ not sure why. I dnf'd The Future and at 33% into Daughter I'm riveted. I am now officially much more excited about this list than The Women's Prize LL. Do you know if last year's judges were all published authors? That list wasn't exciting IMO. I think they've nailed it this year.

read I Have Some Questions For You. Not as good a book as her last--Great Believers. Wish it had been more interesting. Too many pages for the story's meat. Read Great Believers it is a favorite.

Too many books!

Great post, but toward the end there you were transposing letters and pronouncing author names incorrectly. Idk, to me it's ionly respectful to try and get them right.

Non binary writer?