A Half Dozen Oranges

The 2011 Orange Prize for Fiction has been awarded to it’s youngest ever recipient, Téa Obreht for The Tiger’s Wife: a novel. Born in the former Yugoslavia in 1985, she spent her childhood in Cyprus and Egypt, and immigrated to the US at the age of 12. This is her first novel.

Here is what Bettany Hughes, Chair of Judges, had to say:

“The Tiger’s Wife is an exceptional book and Téa Obreht is a truly exciting new talent. Obreht’s powers of observation and her understanding of the world are remarkable. By skilfully spinning a series of magical tales she has managed to bring the tragedy of chronic Balkan conflict thumping into our front rooms with a bittersweet vivacity.”

The book reminds us how easily we can slip into barbarity, but also of the breadth and depth of human love. Obreht celebrates storytelling and she helps us to remember that it is the stories that we tell about ourselves, and about others, that can make us who we are and the world what it is.“

The Orange Prize for Fiction was set up in 1996 to celebrate and promote fiction written by women throughout the world to the widest range of readers possible. The Orange Prize is awarded to the best novel of the year written in English by a woman.

Also for your consideration -here are the five previous Orange Prize winning novels: