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WORD: Underdog Stef Penney pulls a surprise, wins 2006 Costa Book of the year

First-time writer Stef Penney beat best-selling author William Boyd to win the inaugural Costa Book of the Year award for her debut novel 'The Tenderness of Wolves,' (Penguin) a murder mystery set in the snowy landscapes of Canada. Costa officials told Penney of her victory at an awards ceremony at The Grosvenor House Hotel in Central London.

The Costa Book Awards, considered the UK's most prestigious book prize, honors the most enjoyable books of the last year by writers based in the UK and Ireland. It’s formerly known as the Whitbread Book Awards.

In one of the most open contests since the Book of the Year award was introduced in 1985, The Tenderness of Wolves beat odds-on favorite Keeping Mum by Brian Thompson, novelist William Boyd for Restless, poet John Haynes for Letter to Patience and children's book Set in Stone by Linda Newbery, for the overall prize.

"We all felt The Tenderness of Wolves is a very successful and special book. It is not only an extraordinary first novel but an extraordinary novel," said Armando Iannucci, chair of the final judges.

Costa's Managing Director, John Derkach, presented Penney with a £25,000 check at the awards ceremony on February 7. The Tenderness of Wolves, published by Quercus, is only the fourth debut novel to take the overall prize. Kate Atkinson was the last author to win the Book of the Year with a first novel taking the prize over ten years ago in 1995 for Behind the Scenes at the Museum, Costa officials said.

In an unusual side note, officials said that Penney, a recently recovered agoraphobic who has never been to Canada, researched The Tenderness of Wolves at The British Library in London.

Since the introduction of the Book of the Year award in 1985, it has been won seven times by a novel, three times by a first novel, five times by a biography, five times by a collection of poetry and once by a children's book.

 

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