News & Reviews

WORD: Patricia Wood gets Orange Prize nomination for ‘Lottery’

Debut novelist Patricia Wood was the only American nominated for the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction, the author told WORD’N’BASS. The Orange Prize, among the most prestigious literary titles in the UK, recognizes talented women authors whose work is published in Great Britain, and Patricia's breakout novel "Lottery" made the cut.

Patricia, who will be flown out to London for the awards ceremony at London's Royal Festival Hall on June 4, said she was both thrilled and "ready to burst from the pressure" after her UK publisher said she was among six nominees. Penguin Group imprint Putnam published the US edition last summer.

"It was surreal," Patricia told WORD’N’BASS about her initial reaction to making the Orange Prize’s shortlist for her novel, about a man with a low IQ who wins the Washington State Lottery and must deal with its fallout. "Until it was official I kept on thinking that they would find out it was a mistake and say, ‘Oh those were the six that DIDN’T make it.’ I am beyond excited."

Make it she did. Other Orange Prize nominees include "Fault Lines" by Nancy Huston, "The Outcast" by Sadie Jones, "When We Were Bad" by Charlotte Mendelson, "The Road Home" by Rose Tremain and "Lullabies For Little Criminals" by Heather O'Neill.

We think O'Neill, a talented Canadian writer and spoken word artist, will give Patricia her stiffest competition. Lullabies’ protagonist is a 12-year-old girl who spends time in foster homes, abandoned in an apartment, and on the streets of Montreal that her literary agent Sam Stoloff described as "an oddly charming, somewhat wistful portrait" of a street kid.

The winner of Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction will earn 30,000 pounds, about $59,000, as well as a typical spike in book sales after the winner is announced in June.

UPDATE (May 13): Patricia Wood’s bid for an Orange Prize received a shot in the arm after actress Sarah Michelle Gellar optioned the film rights to her novel "Lottery" (Putnam). Patricia, who informed WORD’N’BASS.com about the deal on Monday, declined to disclose terms of the deal or whether other actors were attached. The UK edition of Lottery is one of six titles nominated for the Orange Prize. For more information about Patricia check out her blog.

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