Hatchet Job of the Year

Hatchet Job of the Year is a British journalism award given annually since 2012 to "the writer of the angriest, funniest, most trenchant book review of the past twelve months".^[1] It is awarded by The Omnivore, a review aggregator website,^[2] with the aim to "raise the profile of professional critics and to promote integrity and wit in literary journalism".^[1] The prize is a year's supply of potted shrimp.

Awards

2012

Winner:

• Adam Mars-Jones on By Nightfall by Michael Cunningham (The Observer)

Shortlist:

• Mary Beard on Rome by Robert Hughes (The Guardian)
• Geoff Dyer on The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes (The New York Times)
• Camilla Long on With the Kisses of His Mouth by Monique Roffey (The Sunday Times)
• Lachlan Mackinnon on Clavics by Geoffrey Hill (The Independent)
• Leo Robson on Martin Amis: The Biography by Richard Bradford (New Statesman)
• Jenni Russell on Honey Money by Catherine Hakim (The Sunday Times)
• David Sexton on The Bees by Carol Ann Duffy (London Evening Standard)

Judges:

• Suzi Feay, Rachel Johnson, Sam Leith, D.J. Taylor

2013

Winner:

• Camilla Long on Aftermath: On Marriage and Separation by Rachel Cusk, (The Sunday Times)

Shortlist:

• Craig Brown on The Odd Couple by Richard Bradford, (The Mail on Sunday)
• Ron Charles on Lionel Asbo by Martin Amis, (The Washington Post)
• Richard J. Evans on Hitler: A Short Biography by A.N. Wilson, (New Statesman)
• Claire Harman on Silver: A Return to Treasure Island by Andrew Motion, (London Evening Standard)
• Zoë Heller on Joseph Anton by Salman Rushdie, (New York Review of Books)
• Allan Massie on The Divine Comedy by Craig Raine, (The Scotsman)
• Suzanne Moore on Vagina: A New Biography by Naomi Wolf, (The Guardian)

Judges:

• Lynn Barber, John Walsh and Francis Wheen^[3]

2014

Winner:

• A. A. Gill on Autobiography by Morrissey, (The Sunday Times)^[4]

Shortlist:

• Craig Brown on Distant Intimacy: A Friendship in the Age of the Internet by Frederic Raphael and Joseph Epstein, (The Mail on Sunday)
• Rachel Cooke on Strictly Ann: The Autobiography by Ann Widdecombe, (The Observer)
• Lucy Ellmann on Worst. Person. Ever. by Douglas Coupland, (The Guardian)
• Peter Kemp on The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, (The Sunday Times)
• Frederic Raphael on A Delicate Truth by John le Carré, (The Times Literary Supplement)
• David Sexton on The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, (London Evening Standard)
• Hedley Twiddle on The Last Train to Zona Verde by Paul Theroux, (New Statesman)

Judges:

• Brian Sewell, John Sutherland and Rosie Boycott^[5]

Press coverage

The award has been covered by the BBC,^[6] The Guardian,^[7] Huffington Post,^[8] The Daily Telegraph,^[9] Los Angeles Times, New Statesman, The Paris Review, Salon.com, The Scotsman, Time, The Washington Post, and The Week.

References

1. "Hatchet Job of the Year". Hatchet Job of the Year. 2013-02-12. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
2. "The Latest Book Reviews, Film Reviews & Theatre Reviews Online". The Omnivore. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
3. Alison Flood (2013-05-14). "Hatchet Job of the Year goes to assault on Rachel Cusk | Books | guardian.co.uk". Guardian. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
4. Alison Flood (2014-02-12). "Hatchet Job of the Year goes to AA Gill for Morrissey broadside". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2014-02-12.
5. Rupert Hawksley (2014-02-11). "'No rhythm, no beauty, no humour': Hatchet Job of the Year 2014 shortlist announced". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2014-02-12.
6. "BBC News - Long wins Hatchet Job award for scathing Cusk review". Bbc.co.uk. 2013-02-13. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
8. "Hatchet Job Award". Huffingtonpost.com. 2013-02-13. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
9. "Hatchet jobs on Rushdie and Amis up for award". Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-05-21.

External links

• http://www.hatchetjoboftheyear.com/