Kamila Shamsie's Home Fire wins Women's Prize for Fiction 2018
Kamila Shamsie has won the Women's Prize for Fiction 2018 for her seventh novel Home Fire, reports The Guardian.
Home Fire is a contemporary re-imagining of the Greek tragedy Antigone that follows three orphaned siblings, elder sister Isma and twins Aneeka and Parvaiz, as the latter leaves them to work for Isis. When the son of the British-Muslim home secretary enters their lives, Aneeka hopes to use him to save her missing brother.
*Drumroll please* We’re thrilled to announce that the 2018 #WomensPrize winner is Kamila Shamsie with Home Fire 🎉 pic.twitter.com/BklJ5LSNS2
— Women's Prize (@WomensPrize) June 6, 2018
When announcing Home Fire as winner of the award, chair of judges Sarah Sands said the panel “chose the book which we felt spoke for our times … Home Fire is about identity, conflicting loyalties, love and politics. And it sustains mastery of its themes and its form. It is a remarkable book which we passionately recommend.”
She added that the novel's selection as winner over acclaimed titles like Jesmyn Wards National Book Award-winning Sing, Unburied, Sing, was "unanimous".
Watch the moment that @kamilashamsie won the 2018 #WomensPrize for Fiction! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/7WB9zifD6O
— Women's Prize (@WomensPrize) June 6, 2018
The Women's Prize for Fiction is awarded annually to what judges consider the best novel of the year written in English by a female author, according to the BBC. Previous winners of the prize include Zadie Smith, Ali SMITH and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The winning author receives £30,000 in prize money and a Bessie - a limited edition bronze figurine.
Home Fire was also longlisted for the 2017 Man Booker prize and shortlisted for the Costa novel award.