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EDINBURGH, Scotland, Aug 20, 2006 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Scottish writer James Meek won the Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year Award, the Scotsman said Sunday.
Meek was given the award, along with a check for $18,815, Saturday at the Edinburgh International Book Festival for his novel, "The People's Act of Love" -- set in the snowdrifts of Siberia during the Russian revolution.
The award is the biggest of its kind specifically for a Scottish writer. The author fought off competition from a shortlist which included Ali Smith and Kathleen Jamie -- who both received a prize of $3,763.
The judging panel -- which consisted of Gavin Wallace, head of literature at the Scottish Arts Council; Robyn Marsack, director of the Scottish Poetry Library; and the author Meaghan Delahunt, a previous winner of a Book Award -- described Meek's novel as an "imaginative compass."
The sold-out awards ceremony was emceed by Richard Holloway, chairman of the Scottish Arts Council.
This is the first year that the Scottish Arts Council's Book Awards ceremony has been held at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
URL: www.upi.com Copyright 2006 by United Press International
