Costa Book Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 27 (1997) Winner
Pauline Melville
ポーリン・メルヴィル
Pōrin Meruvuiru
Aliases:
Pauline C Melville
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1948-01-01 （British Guiana (present-day Guyana)）
- Nationality
- British, Guyanese
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- British Guiana (pre-school years in the 1940s) → South London (early 1950s) → London (currently)
Career
- Occupations
- writer, actress, comedian
- Active Years
- 1967-2024
- Affiliations
- Royal Society of Literature
- Memberships
- Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (2018)
- Nominations
- Orange Prize for Fiction (shortlist) The Ventriloquist's Tale 1998
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunel University | — | psychology and economics | — | 1970-1974 | United Kingdom |
Brunel University
psychology and economics
Period:
1970-1974
Year of Graduation:
1974
Country:
United Kingdom
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Commonwealth Writers' Prize | Shape-Shifter | Best First Book | Commonwealth Foundation | Winner (Regional and Overall) |
| 1990 | Guardian Fiction Prize | Shape-Shifter | — | The Guardian | Winner |
| 1991 | PEN/Macmillan Silver Pen Award | Shape-Shifter | — | PEN | Winner |
| 1997 | Whitbread First Novel Award | The Ventriloquist's Tale | First Novel | — | Winner |
| 1998 | Guyana Prize for Literature | The Ventriloquist's Tale | — | — | Winner |
Commonwealth Writers' Prize
1990
Work:
Shape-Shifter
Category:
Best First Book
Organization:
Commonwealth Foundation
Result:
Winner (Regional and Overall)
Guardian Fiction Prize
1990
Work:
Shape-Shifter
Organization:
The Guardian
Result:
Winner
PEN/Macmillan Silver Pen Award
1991
Work:
Shape-Shifter
Organization:
PEN
Result:
Winner
Whitbread First Novel Award
1997
Work:
The Ventriloquist's Tale
Category:
First Novel
Result:
Winner
Guyana Prize for Literature
1998
Work:
The Ventriloquist's Tale
Result:
Winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Shape-Shifter
1990 short storiesA collection of short stories dealing with post-colonial life in Guyana and London, exploring identity.
post-colonialismidentitymagic realism
The Ventriloquist's Tale
1997 novelStory of a brother and sister exploring the impact of European colonizers on Guyanese Amerindians.
colonialismnature of fictioncultural conflict
The Migration of Ghosts
1998 short storiesCollection of stories about physical and emotional displacement.
migrationghostsplurality
Eating Air
2009 novelNovel exploring the gap between intention and action across various locations.
shadowstransgressionssecrets
The Master of Chaos and Other Fables
2021 fablesCollection of fables showing a world in upheaval.
chaospoliticshumour
Bibliography
- Shape-Shifter (1990)
- The Ventriloquist's Tale (1997)
- The Migration of Ghosts (1998)
- Eating Air (2009)
- The Master of Chaos and Other Fables (2021)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- magic realismsharp humourfluid prose
- Recurring Motifs
- colonial legaciessearch for identityGuyanese multiculturalism
Legacy
English-Guyanese writer born in British Guiana, acclaimed for short stories, novels, and essays winning awards like Commonwealth Writers' Prize. Praised by Salman Rushdie as an original voice.
Quotes
-
I believe her to be one of the few genuinely original writers to emerge in recent years.
Source: Salman Rushdie -
Being a writer is like being a window-cleaner in a house or a castle where the windows are obscured by dirt and grime.
Source: Pauline Melville interview (2010)
Trivia
- Former actress and pioneer in alternative comedy.
- Performed with Sadista Sisters rock cabaret group.