Congratulations are in order!
One of my all-time favorite books, Stiltsville by Susanna Daniel, has won the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize. The Prize is awarded to a fiction writer whose debut work, published in 2010, represents distinguished literary achievement and suggests great promise. (The runner-up in this category is Harper Perennial’s Kapitoil by Teddy Wayne. For more info on all award winners, visit the PEN website).
I have been a huge fan of this book since I read the manuscript years ago. It’s a quiet yet powerful love story that spans nearly 3 decades – and is set against the backdrop of Stiltsville, a community of houses built on stilts in Biscayne Bay, Florida. The setting plays a significant role in the book – and serves, in a way, as an analogy for the relationship: It has a strong foundation but, over time, in stormy seas, the stability of the house – and the relationship – become a bit tenuous.
So, you won’t find any vampires, shape shifters or bio-wizardry in Stiltsville. (not that there’s anything wrong with that!)
What you will find is a very moving story about two people – genuine and flawed – who meet, fall in love, and experience the all the highs and lows of life.
I have given this book to so many librarians. They all come back with the same response: they loved it, they couldn’t put it down, they needed Kleenex.
I’d love to share this gem with you.
To receive a copy of STILTSVILLE, please send an email to librarylovefest@harpercollins.com
I’ve got 50 copies to give away.
Send me an email – and get out your Kleenex…
And check out this page from the author’s site to see photos of her childhood spent in Stiltsville.
-Virginia