Somerset Maugham Award
1 appearances
Susan Elizabeth Hill
スーザン・ヒル
Susan Hill
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1942-02-05 （Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England）
- Nationality
- British
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Scarborough, North Yorkshire → Coventry → Stratford-upon-Avon → Chipping Campden
Career
- Occupations
- Author, Novelist, Playwright
- Active Years
- 1961-
- Memberships
- Royal Society of Literature
- Influenced By
- M. R. James, Daphne du Maurier
- Nominations
- Booker Prize (1972) shortlist
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barr's Hill School | — | — | — | 1950s | United Kingdom |
| King's College London | Faculty of Arts | Department of English | BA | 約1960–1963 | United Kingdom |
Barr's Hill School
Period:
1950s
Year of Graduation:
1959
Country:
United Kingdom
Secondary education; studied English, French, History and Latin at A-level
King's College London
Faculty of Arts
/ Department of English
Degree:
BA
Period:
約1960–1963
Year of Graduation:
1963
Country:
United Kingdom
Published first novel during her first year at university
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Somerset Maugham Award | I'm the King of the Castle | — | — | winner |
| 1972 | Whitbread Novel Award | The Bird of Night | — | — | winner |
| 1972 | Booker Prize | The Bird of Night | — | — | shortlist |
| 1972 | John Llewellyn Rhys Prize | The Albatross | — | — | winner |
| 1975 | Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature | — | — | Royal Society of Literature | elected |
| 1988 | Nestlé Smarties Book Prize (Gold Award, 6–8 years) | Can It Be True?: A Christmas Story | 6–8 years | — | winner (Gold) |
| 2012 | CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) | — | — | — | appointed |
| 2020 | DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire) | — | — | — | appointed |
Somerset Maugham Award
1971
Work:
I'm the King of the Castle
Result:
winner
Whitbread Novel Award
1972
Work:
The Bird of Night
Result:
winner
Booker Prize
1972
Work:
The Bird of Night
Result:
shortlist
John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
1972
Work:
The Albatross
Result:
winner
Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
1975
Organization:
Royal Society of Literature
Result:
elected
Nestlé Smarties Book Prize (Gold Award, 6–8 years)
1988
Work:
Can It Be True?: A Christmas Story
Category:
6–8 years
Result:
winner (Gold)
CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
2012
Result:
appointed
DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
2020
Result:
appointed
Awards & Nominations
John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 31 (1972) Winner
Costa Book Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 2 (1972) Winner
Nestlé Smarties Book Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 4 (1988) Winner
Works
Major Works
The Woman in Black
1983 Gothic / Horror (ghost story)A classic English ghost story relying on atmosphere and suspense: an isolated house and the haunting associated with it.
ghostsisolationguilt of the past
Adaptations
- [play] The Woman in Black (play) / Stephen Mallatratt (adaptation) (1987)
- [television film] The Woman in Black (1989 film) / Herbert Wise (1989)
- [film] The Woman in Black (2012 film) / James Watkins (2012)
I'm the King of the Castle
1970 Literary fiction (psychological novel)A sharp novel about childhood and domestic power dynamics. Winner of the Somerset Maugham Award (1971).
cruelty in childrenfamily discordpower relations
The Bird of Night
1972 Literary fictionA novel about the life and torment of an artist; winner of the Whitbread Novel Award and shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
artisolationpsychological torment
Bibliography
- The Enclosure
- Do Me a Favour
- Gentleman and Ladies
- A Change for the Better
- I'm the King of the Castle
- Strange Meeting
- The Bird of Night
- In the Springtime of the Year
- The Woman in Black
- The Mist in the Mirror
- Mrs de Winter
- Simon Serrailler series (multiple novels)
- The Man in the Picture
- The Beacon
- The Small Hand
Adaptations
- The Woman in Black (stage play, 1989 TV film, 2012 film, etc.)
- TV adaptation work related to the Simon Serrailler series (involvement by adaptor Barbara Machin)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Descriptive, atmosphere-driven Gothic styleDraws on traditional English ghost-story conventions
- Recurring Motifs
- ghostsisolationnostalgiashadows of the past
Legacy
Susan Hill has carried the tradition of the English ghost story into the modern era; The Woman in Black became widely known through stage and film adaptations. She has worked across genres for decades and is regarded as an important voice in contemporary British literature.
Academic Societies
- Royal Society of Literature
In Popular Culture
- Long-running West End stage production of The Woman in Black
- 2012 film adaptation widened recognition among younger audiences
Trivia
- Founded her own publishing company Long Barn Books in the 1990s.
- The Woman in Black was adapted for the stage and ran in the West End from 1987 until 2022.
- Awarded a CBE in 2012 and made a Dame (DBE) in 2020 for services to literature.
- Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1975.
- Has published across genres including novels, short stories, children's books and nonfiction.