Wednesday 4 July 2012

The Edge Hill Prize and Other Stories

Well I'm very excited to be shortlisted for the 2012 Edge Hill Prize for the short story. The awards do is tomorrow at the Free Word Centre in London (if you follow Free Word on twitter they DM you a word!). I'm all ready to go. Booked my train. I have, till it rains, extremely smooth hair. I'm looking forward to meeting AJ Ashworth, Sarah Hall, Rowena Macdonald and Tessa Hadley and drinking lots of wine with them. There's more about the shortlist here.

'A startling good collection of stories by a confident writer. Reading it is like taking a masterclass in how to do it well.' Mslexia (buy issue 54 here)

It isn't online but here are some reviews that are:

'Lambert's collection presents a carefully balanced picture of the world's combat zones... The writing is disarmingly plain and to-the-point... a kind of narrative ambush... I'd recommend that you read these.'The Guardian

'Reading 'The War Tour' is like wandering through a labyrinth of the unexpected, full of marvellous things... Lambert gazes into the abyss and does not flinch.' - 3:AM Magazine.

'Poignantly portraying the everyday loves, losses, strengths and sacrifices of those living with war, The War Tour depicts trauma, horror and confusion alongside defiance, duty and survival, all in quiet, compelling language that resonates long beyond the final page.' - For Books' Sake.

what makes this book special is the warmth and care that is shown to the real people in the stories and her determination not to judge or take sides.  War is not something that happens a long way away or a long time ago, it happens to the people you meet every day in Manchester and Salford or any other City. Lancashire Writing Hub

'it is the level of research, the desire to bring to light hidden, forgotten or sidelined stories of war, and the willingness to showcase her writerly concerns that form the basis of Lambert’s personal hallmark. The effect can be polemic.' Real Time Short Stories

'The War Tour begins and ends with a flourish... surprising and very well written.'Keeper of the Snails blog

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