Book Jacket for The Secret Scripture

The Secret Scripture wins Costa Novel Award

Novel goes against other winners for Costa Award

6 January 2009

The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry (Faber), shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2008, has won the 'novel' category for this year's Costa Book Awards.  He beat off competition from novelists Chris Cleave, Louis de Bernieres and Patrick McGrath.

Barry will receive £5,000 for the category, and go head to head with winners of the ‘first novel', ‘biography' and ‘poetry' categories to win the overall Costa Book of the Year prize of £25,000.

They are:

First Novel Sadie Jones, The Outcast (Vintage)
Biography Diana Athill, Somewhere Towards the End (Granta)
Poetry Adam Foulds, The Broken Word (Cape)
Children's Book Michelle Magorian, Just Henry (Egmont). 

The Secret Scripture was the bookies' favourite to win the Man Booker Prize 2008 and the judging panel made no secret that it came narrowly behind winner The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga.

To read an interview with Sebastian Barry please visit our Perspective section. You can also hear an audio extract from The Secret Scripture or watch a video interview with Barry, recorded in the days leading up to the Man Booker Prize 2008 dinner.

The overall winner will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Intercontinental Hotel, central London on 27 January 2009.

The Man Booker Prize Fiction at its finest