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Aminatta Forna
At the awards ceremony in Sydney, the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for best first book was awarded to New Zealander Craig Cliff for his collection of short stories "A Man Melting".
"This year's winning books demonstrate the irreducible power of the written word at a time of rapid global change and uncertainty," said Nicholas Hasluck, chair of the judging panel for the prize, which is now in its 25th year.
The Commonwealth Writers' Prize is open to writers from across 54 countries. Former winners include Louis De Bernieres, Ian McEwan and Zadie Smith.
Forna was born in Glasgow, Scotland but raised in Sierra Leone. Her other books include "The Devil that Danced on the Water" and "Ancestor Stones".
The other finalists for the £10,000 ($16,000) best book prize were Australia's Kim Scott for "That Deadman Dance", Briton David Mitchell for "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet" and Canada's Emma Donoghue for "Room".
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"This year's winning books demonstrate the irreducible power of the written word at a time of rapid global change and uncertainty," said Nicholas Hasluck, chair of the judging panel for the prize, which is now in its 25th year.
The Commonwealth Writers' Prize is open to writers from across 54 countries. Former winners include Louis De Bernieres, Ian McEwan and Zadie Smith.
Forna was born in Glasgow, Scotland but raised in Sierra Leone. Her other books include "The Devil that Danced on the Water" and "Ancestor Stones".
The other finalists for the £10,000 ($16,000) best book prize were Australia's Kim Scott for "That Deadman Dance", Briton David Mitchell for "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet" and Canada's Emma Donoghue for "Room".
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