Costa Book Awards 2014

20 books have been shortlisted for the 2014 Costa Book Awards. There are 5 award categories - biography, novel, first novel, poetry and children’s books - the winners of which will be announced on January 5th. On January 27th an overall winner will be chosen from the five category award winners. Last year's top prize went to The Shock of the Fall by debut novelist Nathan Filer.

Colm Tóibín’s Nora Webster is one of the shortlisted books in the Novel category. Toibin’s Brooklyn won the 2009 award. Academy Street by Mary Costello from Galway has been shortlisted for the First Novel category. It follows Tess from her childhood in the west of Ireland through her relocation to America and her life there, concluding with a moving re-encounter with her Irish family after forty years of exile.

For the full listing of shortlisted books see: http://www.costa.co.uk/media/280251/CBA2014FullShortlist.pdf