Visitors to Sidmouth Library are being encouraged to take part in a national literary competition to celebrate women s writing. The Orange Prize for Fiction is the UK s only annual book award for fiction written by women and has just announced its shor

Visitors to Sidmouth Library are being encouraged to take part in a national literary competition to celebrate women's writing.

The Orange Prize for Fiction is the UK's only annual book award for fiction written by women and has just announced its shortlist.

Copies of the selected titles are available from all libraries, but readers in Exeter, Ilfracombe, Kingsbridge and Buckfastleigh have the chance to read and argue about the 6 shortlisted titles - as well as the 14 books from the longlist which didn't make it. Staff are encouraging readers to join in "shadowing" the prize, and displaying their comments, as well as join a Blog - www.dev-orange.blogspot.com

The shortlisted authors and their titles are;

Ellen Feldman - Scottsboro

Samantha Harvey - The Wilderness

Samantha Hunt - The Invention of Everything Else

Deirdre Madden - Molly Fox's Birthday

Marilynne Robinson - Home

Kamila Shamsie - Burnt Shadows

The Prize was set up in 1996 to celebrate and promote fiction by women throughout the world to the widest range of readers possible and is awarded for the best novel of the year written by a woman.

Executive Member for Culture, Councillor Sheila Hobden, said:

"We are very happy to be involved with the Orange Prize for Fiction. Any award which celebrates and recognises literary talent is to be welcomed. I am sure that our library users will really get involved with the Prize for Fiction 2009 and I am very pleased to see so many of the titles available at our excellent libraries."

The judges for the 2009 Orange Prize for Fiction are:

Fi Glover (Chair), Broadcaster

Bidisha, Writer and Novelist

Sarah Churchwell, Journalist and Academic

Kira Cochrane, Journalist

Martha Lane Fox, Entrepreneur

"We have stretched our heads getting to this shortlist!" commented Fi Glover, Chair of judges. "We were right down to the wire on several of the books and choosing just six was far harder than I had imagined, but we all left the judging room proud of the list we have chosen.