The Republic of Consciousness Prize 2021 Shortlist

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THE PUBLISHERS, AUTHORS AND TRANSLATORS ON THE 2021 REPUBLIC OF CONSCIOUSNESS SHORTLIST

The five book shortlist represents some of the best of the extraordinary work being produced and published by small presses in the UK and Ireland, and some of the best writing anywhere in the world. The full list features:

· A Ghost in the Throat by Doireann Ní Ghríofa (Tramp Press)

· LOTE by Shola von Reinhold (Jacaranda Books)

· Men and Apparitions by Lynne Tillman (Peninsula Press)

· The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey (Peepal Tree Press)

· A Musical Offering by Luis Sagasti, tr. Fionn Petch (Charco Press)

Including their longlist award, each book receives £3,000, split between the publisher and the author. This brings the amount of money distributed between small publishers and authors in 2021 by the Republic of Consciousness to £20,000 in 2021. The money is raised from three sources: a grant from The Granta Trust, sponsorship from the UEA Publishing Project, and money raised by the Republic of Consciousness Book of the Month programme.

The list contains books from publishers from Dublin, London, Leeds and Edinburgh, and writers/translators based in Ireland, Scotland, USA, England, Argentina and Germany. Featuring hybrid works of essay-fiction and great feats of story-telling, a debut novel and a break-out hit from an established author and translated and English-language novels, the shortlist shows the variety and range of what small presses can and do publish.