An American Marriage by Tayari Jones wins 2019 Women’s Prize for Fiction

Tayari Jones’ fourth novel, An American Marriage, has won the 2019 Women’s Prize for Fiction.

A panel of judges, including Kate Williams, Arifa Akbar, Dolly Alderton, Leyla Hussein and Sarah Wood, declared Jones’ tale of a marriage ripped apart by a wrongful conviction ‘a brilliant book.’

Women’s Prize founder Kate Williams said: “This is an exquisitely intimate portrait of a marriage shattered by racial injustice. It is a story of love, loss and loyalty, the resilience of the human spirit painted on a big political canvas – that shines a light on today’s America. We all loved this brilliant book.”

The winner was announced at a ceremony in Bedford Square Gardens, London, and Jones was presented with the £30,000 prize and the ‘Bessie’, a limited edition bronze figurine.

The Women’s Prize shortlist included The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker, Circe by Madeline Miller, Ordinary People by Diana Evans, My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite and Milkman by Anna Burns.

As well as the Women’s Prize for Fiction winner announcement, aspiring novelist Helen Rogers was named as the winner of the Women’s Prize/Grazia First Chapter Competition for unpublished writers.

An American Marriage is published by Oneworld (£8.99). Buy a copy here