All The Beggars Riding is among the 5 shortlisted titles for the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award 2013, which was announced on April 17at Dublin’s Mansion House by Kerry Group’s Aoife O’Brien. The €15,000 award is the largest monetary prize for fiction available solely to Irish authors. Previous winners of the award include Christine Dwyer Hickey, Anne Enright, Neil Jordan, John Banville, Joseph O’Neill, Roddy Doyle, Sebastian Barry and John McGahern.

The chair of the jury, Robert McCrum said “After an intensive selection process, shared throughout this spring with my distinguished associate Rita Ann Higgins, I am delighted to announce these 5 fine writers for the shortlist of a most important Irish literary prize. It has been such an honour to make a contribution to this part of Listowel Writers’ Week, and I look forward to working with Rita Ann in picking the winner. It’s going to be a close race, down to the wire.”

Commenting on her shortlisting, Lucy said “I am thrilled beyond words that my novel’s been shortlisted for the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year. I’ve wanted to come to Listowel Writers’ Week for as long as I can remember, and to come as a shortlistee is just wonderful.”