Diriye Osman has won the Polari First Book Prize for his short story collection, Fairytales for Lost Children, published by Team Angelica Press.
Last night, (Wednesday, October 8), the British-Somali short story writer, essayist, critic and visual artist was presented with a cheque for £1,000 by Vincent François, Chair of the UK LGBT Network and Regional Head of Audit of Société Générale, at the Polari Literary Salon at the London Literature Festival.
The Polari First Book Prize is for a first book which explores the LGBT experience and is open to any work of poetry, prose, fiction or non-fiction published in the UK in English within the twelve months of the deadline for submissions (this year 1st February 2014).
Self-published works in both print and digital formats are also eligible for submission.
For the first time this year, the five shortlisted books are on sale at selected WH Smiths travel outlets across the country.
Paul Burston, Chair of judges, said: “With such a strong shortlist, deciding on a winner was incredibly difficult. The Polari First Book Prize is about celebrating voices which are often ignored or difficult to hear. Writing as a black gay African man from a Muslim background, Osman dazzled us with the wide range of literary voices in this stunning short story collection. We look forward to his next book and feel confident that he will dazzle us again.”
The judging panel this year featured:
• Author, journalist and host of Polari Paul Burston (Chair)
• Critic and broadcaster Bidisha
• Author and former Culture Editor for Channel 4 News Matt Cain
• Literary critic and broadcaster Suzi Feay
• Author and former Head of Literature and Spoken Word at the Southbank Rachel Holmes, and
• VG Lee, author and comedian.
Fairytales for Lost Children is narrated by people constantly on the verge of self-revelation. These characters – young gay and lesbian Somalis – must navigate the complexities of family, identity and the immigrant experience as the tumble towards freedom.
Set in Kenya, Somalia and South London, these stories are imbued with pathos, passion and linguistic playfulness, marking the arrival of a singular new voice in contemporary fiction.
The 2014 shortlisted titles were:
• I Am Nobody’s Nigger by Dean Atta (Westbourne Press)
• Petite Mort by Beatrice Hitchman (Serpent’s Tail)
• Fairytales for Lost Children by Diriye Osman (Team Angelica)
• God’s Other Children – A London Memoir by Vernal W. Scott (self-published)
• The Rubbish Lesbian by Sarah Westwood (Mimwood Press)
Polari Literary Salon launched in 2007 in the upstairs room of a pub in Soho and was named ‘London’s peerless gay literary salon’ by The Independent on Sunday. Now, Polari is housed at the Southbank Centre where monthly events showcase the best in established, new and up-and-coming LGBT literary talent and performance.
The Prize’s media partner is Square Peg Media, publishers of g3 and OUT In The City magazines.
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