The National Book Council has announced the shortlist of books published in 2019 which are contending for the 2020 National Book Prize.
The National Book Prize and Terramaxka Prize shortlist is selected by an independent adjudication board and serves as guide to standout books published in Malta during the previous year.
The shortlist includes 68 titles out of a total of 182 longlisted works; 44 books have been shortlisted in the nine categories for publications for adults and 24 books for the Terramaxka Prize.
As of this year’s edition, poetry publications are being considered for prizes in two distinct categories, Poetry in English and Poetry in Maltese.
The categories for General Research and Biographic and Historiographic Research feature the greatest number of shortlisted works, with 11 titles in each category covering a wide range of Melitensia subjects. The category for Original Works for adolescents of 13-16 years within the Terramaxka Prize is the only one with no shortlisted titles.
The adjudication process was launched in May with the publication of the 2020 National Book Prize longlist. On July 16, the adjudication board presented the shortlist, including a statement of justification for each entry that did not make the shortlist. Authors and publishers interested in accessing the judges’ statement should contact the National Book Council prize administrators.
The adjudication board will be selecting the winners in each category of the National Book Prize and the Terramaxka Prize for children’s literature ahead of the Terramaxka Prize winners announcement on November 10, during the official opening of the Malta Book Festival 2020. The winners of the National Book Prize 2020 will be announced at an award-giving ceremony later in December.
Shortlisted titles can be purchased from all bookstores, publishers’ online shop and at the upcoming Malta Book Festival 2020 being held between November 11 and 15 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta.
For further updates, follow the National Book Council Facebook page and website at https://ktieb.org.mt/.