The Republic of Consciousness Prize, United States and Canada, has revealed the longlist for its 2024 award, with 10 books in contention for the prize given annually to celebrate “the commitment of small presses to exceptional literary merit.”
Mark Haber made the longlist for Lesser Ruins, published by Coffee House Press, alongside Leah Hager Cohen for To & Fro (Bellevue Literary Press), Lindsay Hill for Tidal Lock(McPherson & Company), and Manya Wilkinson for Lublin (And Other Stories).
Six of the 10 longlisted books are translated titles: Like a Sky Inside, written by Jakuta Alikavazovic and translated by Daniel Levin Becker (Fern); Melvill, written by Rodrigo Fresán and translated by Will Vanderhyden (Open Letter); Overstaying, written by Ariane Koch and translated by Damion Searls (Dorothy, a publishing project); The Case of Cem, written by Vera Mutafchieva and translated by Angela Rodel (Sandorf Passage); Your Absence is Darkness, written by Jón Kalman Stefánsson and translated by Philip Roughton (Biblioasis); and Gifted, written by Suzumi Suzuki and translated by Allison Markin Powell (Transit Books).
The Republic of Consciousness Prize, United States and Canada, the North American version of a U.K. award, was established in 2022 by bookseller and critic Lori Feathers, who said in a statement, “We are proud to include books in translation, works of innovative storytelling, and publishers new to our longlist. It's a great time to celebrate the work of these publishers, authors, and translators.”
The previous winners of the prize are God’s Children Are Little Broken Things, written by Arinze Ifeakandu and published by A Public Space Books, and Lojman, written by Ebru Ojen, translated by Aron Aji and Selin Gökçesu, and published by City Lights.
The shortlist for this year’s award will be announced on Feb. 27, with the winner set to be revealed on March 12.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
