Lanny, a novel by the Bath-based author Max Porter, has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Book of the Year 2019, one of eleven books vying for the award.

Bath-based author Max Porter | Photo © Lucy Dickens
The wide-ranging shortlist comprises four fiction titles, two works of non-fiction, three children’s books, an illustrated fable and a cookery book.
Every year, Waterstones booksellers are called on to nominate a title which they find truly outstanding, and in which they have felt the most pride recommending to readers over the preceding twelve months.
Last year’s winner, Normal People by Sally Rooney, had escaped proper recognition until she won the Waterstones Book of the Year. Her book then became the runaway Christmas bestseller and went on to become one of 2018’s biggest selling books.
James Daunt, Managing Director of Waterstones, said: “That we have a shortlist of eleven gives indication of the nature of the Waterstones Book of the Year.
“It follows no rule other than that our booksellers must love these books and wish to see them in the hands of more readers.
“Some years, we can settle on fewer to compete but this year the range and balance of argument was too finely poised. It is a fabulous list.”
Bea Carvalho, Waterstones Fiction Buyer, added: “Max Porter’s lyrical, symphonic second novel has set the standard in literary fiction for us this year.
“Lanny is an atmospheric celebration of childhood and nature which is steeped in folklore and a rich sense of place. It’s a novel which defies classification and challenges conventional form: we fell in love with its creativity and Porter’s exquisite, poetic prose.
“Grief is the Thing with Feathers signified the launch of an exciting new author and Lanny has ensured Porter’s reputation as a new giant of contemporary literary fiction: we can’t wait to see where his career goes from here.”
Porter was born in High Wycombe in 1981 and received an MA in History of Art at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London.
Prior to his writing career, Porter was a bookseller and won the Bookseller of the Year Award in 2009, and he was Editorial Director at Granta and Portobello Books until 2019.
The title named Waterstones Book of the Year will receive the full and committed backing of Waterstones shops and booksellers across the UK, as well as support online and through its loyalty card programme, Waterstones Plus, which reaches almost a million readers.
The Waterstones Book of the Year 2019 will be chosen by a Waterstones panel headed by James Daunt and will be announced on Wednesday 27th November.