Indie Book of the Year

Monday, March 20, 2017

Australian author Jane Harper’s atmospheric thriller The Dry has been named Book of the Year at the 2017 Indie Book Awards.

The awards, bestowed by Australian independent booksellers and coordinated by Leading Edge Books, have a strong reputation for highlighting the best Australian titles.

The list of previous award winners reads like a who’s who of Australian writing. Since its inception in 2008, Breath by Tim Winton, The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do, Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey, All That I Am by Anna Funder, The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman, The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan, The Bush by Don Watson and The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood have been chosen as Indie Book of the Year winners.

Jane said she was thrilled The Dry now stood alongside those incredible titles.

"Independent booksellers have championed the novel from the very start and thousands of readers have discovered The Dry thanks to their passionate hand-selling and personal recommendations," she said.

"It is an honour to have been selected for this award by people who know readers so well, and I remain so grateful and touched by the enthusiasm and support independent booksellers have shown both for The Dry and Australian fiction in general."

The Dry also took out the Indie Award for the best debut fiction title.

More than 60,000 copies of The Dry have been sold in Australia since its launch last year, and it continues to sell strongly.

"I've been overwhelmed by the way independent booksellers have embraced The Dry, hand-sold it and championed debut Australian fiction," Jane said.

"I know it has made a huge difference to the sales and word-of-mouth exposure for the book, because hundreds of readers have told me so, and for that I am immensely grateful."

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