BARS is delighted to announce the appointment of the BARS First Book Prize Panel for 2023. The selection committee were delighted at the amount of interest expressed by the membership, and are grateful to all the applicants who were willing to donate their time so generously in evaluating books for the panel. In selecting members of the Panel, the committee balanced experience and standing in the profession with the fresh perspective that ECR representation would give in the process. As such the committee was composed as follows:
- Chair: Simon Kövesi
- Readers: Mary Fairclough, Yimon Lo, Brianna Robertson-Kirkland
BARS would like to thank Simon, Mary, Yimon and Brianna for their service to BARS over the coming months, in what is a demanding but important and pleasurable role.
The Panel will be responsible for reviewing eligible books published between January 2021 and December 2022, and nominated for long-listing in the first instance. Panelists will meet together shortly to agree a timeframe for the review process and final decisions. The process normally comprises the following rounds, to be confirmed for the 2023 round by the Book Prize Chair and BARS President:
- an initial Longlist of eligible titles, based on nominations, will be divided between panelists for review
- a First Shortlist, for which each panelist will typically nominate two books, for a total of eight titles
- a Second Shortlist, made up of four books, each of which will have been reviewed by two panelists, and confirmed by the entire Panel;
- a Final Round, in which the four books will be reviewed by all panelists and ranked for the winner’s and runners-up prizes.
The Chair of the Book Panel will be co-opted as a member of the BARS Executive Committee for a period of not more than two years, at which time the Chair for the 2025 BARS First Book Prize will have been appointed.