Prizes round-up

Aharon Appelfeld (l) and translator Jeffrey M Green (r) win the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2012

It's been a busy month for prizes announcements so we thought we would give you some of the highlights of the last few months:

Independent Foreign Fiction Prize

Blooms of Darkness by Aharon Appelfeld and translated by Jeffrey M Green won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2012.

Read an exclusive interview with Aharon Appelfeld

On a rare visit to London, Appelfeld commented:

'Blooms of Darkness is a work of fiction that includes my personal experience during the Second World War. I wanted to explore the darkest places of human behaviour and to show that even there, generosity and love can survive; that humanity and love can overcome cruelty and brutality. It is a joy to win the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize alongside Jeffrey M Green - he is a highly professional translator and I love his work.'

More on the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 

Kim Scott Walwyn Prize

Rukhsana Yasmin, a physicist turned publisher, was named the winner of the Kim Scott Walwyn Prize 2012 after just five years in the trade.

The accolade, which recognises both the professional achievements and promise of women in publishing, was announced at a ceremony packed with publishers, young and old, at the Free Word Centre in Farringdon. Matthew Hollis, Editor at Faber & Faber and prize-winning author, who was a good friend and colleague of Kim Scott Walwyn, awarded Rukhsana with her Prize of £1,000 sponsored by the Society of Young Publishers and a two-day course of her choice, courtesy of the Publishing Training Centre.

Read a blog from Rukhsana about her win

More on the Kim Scott Walwyn Prize

Orange Prize for Fiction

American author Madeline Miller won the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction with her debut novel The Song of Achilles (Bloomsbury).

Joanna Trollope, Chair of Judges, commented: 

'This is a more than worthy winner - original, passionate, inventive and uplifting.  Homer would be proud of her.'

The awards took place in The Clore Ballroom of the Royal Festival Hall, central London and guests toasted the announcement of the winner at a champagne drinks reception courtesy of Taittinger. In addition to the Orange Prize for Fiction winner announcement, aspiring novelist Jennifer Cullen was named as the winner of the Orange/Grazia First Chapter Competition for unpublished writers.