Costa Book Awards 2012: Category Winners Announced

Costa Coffee today announces the Costa Book Awards 2012 winners in the Novel, First Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children’s Book categories.

The Costa Book Awards recognise some of the most outstanding and enjoyable books of the last year by writers based in the UK and Ireland.

Originally established in 1971 by Whitbread PLC, Costa announced its takeover of the sponsorship of the UK’s popular and prestigious book prize in 2006. 2012 marks the 41st year of the Book Awards.

The five successful authors who will now compete for the 2012 Costa Book of the Year are:

·  Husband and wife team Mary and Bryan Talbot, who jointly win the Costa Biography Award for Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes, an interweaving of two father-daughter relationships

·  Hilary Mantel, who takes the Costa Novel Award for Bring up the Bodies

·  Journalist, critic and writer Francesca Segal, whose debut novel The Innocents,  wins the Costa First Novel Award

·  Poet Kathleen Jamie whose book The Overhaul, is described by the judges as ‘the collection that will convert you to poetry’

·  Writer-illustrator and dyslexia campaigner, Sally Gardner, who takes the Costa Children’s Book Award for Maggot Moon.

“Once again, our judges have selected five terrific books as Award winners from the various categories,” said Christopher Rogers, Managing Director, Costa.“We’re very proud to be announcing such a diverse and excellent collection of books which we know people will enjoy reading.”

The five Costa Book Award winners, each of whom will receive £5,000, were selected from 550 entries. The five books are now eligible for the ultimate prize – the 2012 Costa Book of the Year.

The winner, selected by a panel of judges chaired by Dame Jenni Murray, and comprising Jenny Agutter, Katie Derham, Mark Watson, Sophie Ward, Wendy Holden, D.J. Taylor, Daljit Nagra and Marcus Sedgwick, will be announced at an awards ceremony hosted by presenter and broadcaster Penny Smith at Quaglino’s in central London on Tuesday 29th January 2013.

Since the introduction of the Book of the Year award in 1985, it has been won ten times by a novel, four times by a first novel, five times by a biography, seven times by a collection of poetry and once by a children’s book.  The 2011 Costa Book of the Year was Pure by Andrew Miller.

This year, for the first time, the winner of the inaugural Costa Short Story Award – voted for by the general public – will also be announced at the awards ceremony.

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