The Parisian

"Ambition, bravery, freshness— The Parisian , a first novel, has all three in spades. It’s a rare talent that can take on the complications and shifting identities of early 20th-century Middle Eastern politics and keep the reader charmed. But through her hero, Midhat Kamal, Isabella Hammad does that and more. It takes a remarkable eye for detail and ear for dialogue to succeed in both broad panorama and delicate miniature. As for the latter, the scene in which Midhat observes his future bride through the keyhole is a particular favourite. Wonderfully done. Every historical novel requires huge research, and research is part fun, part pitfall. How you long to slot in some fascinating—to you—discovery, even if it moves the novel onwards not at all. Surely, surely the reader will forgive? The reader doesn’t. All research self-indulgences must be stamped on. Kill your darlings, as journalists say, but don’t always do. But it’s horses for courses. “If the reader remembers the historical context but not the characters, something has gone wrong” All our shortlisted authors use their research according to the needs of their novel. So, for example, we need more context in Isabella Hammad’s The Parisian and Marguerite Poland’s A Sin of Omission than for the other four books. When context is needed, the skill is not to let it drown the story. If the reader remembers the historical context but not the characters, something has gone wrong. As you’d expect, in the view of the judges, the Walter Scott Prize shortlisted books don’t fall into that trap."