Margaret Atwood, Annie Proulx up for women’s fiction prize

LONDON – Margaret Atwood, Annie Proulx and Mary Gaitskill are among North American contenders for the international Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Atwood’s Shakespeare-inspired “Hag-Seed,” Proulx’s historical saga “Barkskins” and Gaitskill’s horse-centric saga “The Mare” are among 16 finalists announced Wednesday.

The prestigious prize is open to female English-language writers from around the world, and the longlist includes authors from Nigeria, South Africa, Canada, the United States, Britain and Ireland.

Contenders include Nigeria’s Ayobami Adebayo for “Stay With Me,” Britain’s Linda Grant for “The Dark Circle” and Britain’s Rose Tremain for “The Gustav Sonata.”

The contenders will be whittled down to a shortlist on April 3, and the winner of the 30,000-pound ($37,000) prize will be announced June 7.

The annual award is officially named the Baileys Women’s Prize after its sponsor.