Awards announced for Jewish Australia writers
Sydney-based Shalom has announced the creation of the Shalom Australian Jewish Book Awards to recognise excellence in contemporary Jewish Australian writing.
Two inaugural prizes will be awarded in August of 2024 for books published during the 2023 calendar year.
The Leslie and Sophie Caplan Award for Jewish Non-Fiction.
Works of significant relevance to the Jewish experience are eligible to win the Award, which includes a $10,000 prize and an on-stage interview at the Sydney Jewish Writers Festival (SJWF) as part of the award ceremony.
The Plus61J Media Young Jewish Writers Award.
Works of fiction and non-fiction on Jewish subjects by Jewish authors aged 18-40, are eligible to win the $5,000 prize and an on-stage interview at the SJWF as part of the award ceremony.
Among Shalom’s aims in establishing the Shalom Australian Jewish Book Awards are promoting the reading of important Jewish texts, and inspiring and supporting current and future Australian authors on Jewish subjects. Encouraging Australian Jewish literacy is a core value of the organisation, which also supports the SJWF, a year-long program of interactive events showcasing Jewish authors and works.
Anna Stern, Deputy Director of Programs at Shalom, initiated the project. She said: “We hope that the establishment of this award will help cultivate and support a flourishing local arts community, provide a platform for authors to receive further exposure and publicity, and award writers with a monetary prize to support their literary pursuits further.”
The Leslie and Sophie Caplan Award for Jewish Non-Fiction has been generously donated by the Caplan Family to honour the memory of their parents, Leslie and Sophie.
Both were pillars of the Sydney Jewish community who had keen interest in modern Jewish history and literature. In thinking about their parents, Leslie and Sophie’s family shared: “Leslie and Sophie were both living embodiments of the description of the Jews as the ‘People of the Book’. Inspiring the establishment of the Australian Jewish Book Award is a small and fitting tribute to them as both readers and published authors.”
Submissions will close on 4 April. A panel of judges (writer and journalist, Julie Szego; and Jonathan Caplan, representing the Caplan Family) will judge the submissions, which must be non-fiction and fall into the categories of Jewish studies, autobiography, biography, memoir, history, or journalism. The winner will be announced in August at the SJWF.
The Plus61J Media Young Jewish Writers Award has been generously donated by Plus61J Media publisher Uri Windt. “As a media organisation we are acutely aware of the power of words. Books and culture are as important as bricks and mortar. We are thrilled to help promote young authors advance their careers through this opportunity.” Plus61J Media provides an independent voice on Australia, Israel and the Jewish world via its website, biweekly online newsletter and community events.
Submissions will close on 4 April. A panel of three judges (writer and critic, Tali Lavi; writer and critic, Jonathan Seidler; and Sharon Berger, representing Plus61J Media) will judge the submissions, which can be fiction, non-fiction or a book chapter with a Jewish theme. The winner will be announced in August at the SJWF.
