The RSL Ondaatje Prize 2016 Shortlist

Huge congratulations to Alexandra Harris (WEATHERLAND) and James Rebanks (THE SHEPHERD’S LIFE), two of the six titles shortlisted for this year’s RSL Ondaatje Prize, awarded annually to a work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry “that best evokes the spirit of a place”, of which the judges said:

Alexandra Harris, Weatherland: Writers & Artists under English Skies (Thames & Hudson)

‘Alexandra Harris’s book is scholarly, intimate, deft and witty, and in its cultural explorations through time, via the English weather, it makes an original contribution to the “spirit of place”.’

James Rebanks, The Shepherd’s Life: A Tale of the Lake District (Allen Lane)

‘Compelling, authentic and absolutely unromanticised, The Shepherd’s Life illuminates an honourable tradition in a changing rural world and, in doing so, reveals little known aspects of a celebrated landscape.’.

The judges this year are Kate Adie, Monica Alvi and Mark Lawson. The winner will be announced on 23rd May.