British Commonwealth and Republic of Ireland Prizes
Each October, The Man Booker Prize recognizes writers from the British Commonwealth and the Republic of Ireland. Winners are often young writers and both the list of winners and the shortlist of nominees typically offer titles worth reading by authors you may not have heard of.
The Whitbread Prize is usually a sure bet for a good read. While many prizes employ judges who are critics and writers tasked with identifying Good Literature, the Whitbread judging panels typcially consist of an author, a journalist and a bookseller tasked with identifying a shortlist of books they'd recommend anyone to read. The final panel consists of authors plus public figures who love reading. The prize is given annually for works published in the UK by residents of the UK.
The Orange Prize recognizes the best full-length novel written in English by a woman as determined by a panel of five female judges.
The Society of Authors offers multiple prizes, including The Betty Trask Prize, whose award list is a must read if you like new writers, but not new styles of fiction. The award is given to Commonwealth writers under 35 publishing their first work--work that must be romantic or traditional in style, not experimental. Unlike many other award organizations, the Society of Authors also recognizes translated works, providing a nice source for readers who prefer a more global selection.
North American Prizes
The Giller Prize annually recognizes the best full-length novel or short story collection published in Canada in English by a Canadian citizen. Many Americans tend to see little difference between themselves and Canadians. Reading through the winners of the Giller Prize reveals a unique nation with a very distinct literature of its own.
The National Book Award strives to be for American literature what the Booker and Whitbread Prizes are for British and "recognize books of exceptional merit written by Americans." Their track record is a bit spotty, but the list is worth browsing when you're in the mood for American literature.
The National Book Critics Circle consists of over 700 book reviewers. This award is their chance to reward the best of their reading. If you're someone who finds book reviews a good source for reading, then the NBCC's Award list will be a motherlode of books for you.
The American Book Awards, sponsored by the Before Columbus Foundation, are a great source of reading material if you're interested in writers from diverse background. The awards were established to recognize literature from ethnically diverse writers, so the list of winners is a bouillabaise of backgrounds.
