2015 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Book title of the Year
The prize was originally conceived in 1978 by Trevor Bounford, co-founder with Bruce Robertson of publishing solutions firm The Diagram Group and has been administered every year by the Bookseller and Horace Bent, the magazine's diarist.
The 2015 shortlisted titles are:
Nature's Nether Regions by Menno Schilthuizen (Viking), a history of the evolution of genitals
Advanced Pavement Research: Selected, Peer Reviewed Papers from the 3rd International Conference on Concrete Pavements Design, Construction, and Rehabilitation, December 2-3, 2013, Shanghai, China edited by Bo Tian (Trans Tech); academic papers from a two-day pavement symposium.
The Madwoman in the the Volvo: My Year of Raging Hormones by Sandra Tsing-Loh (Norton), a memoir of the menopause
Where do Camels Belong? By Ken Thompson (Profile), an investigation into native and invasive species.
Divorcing a Real Witch: For Pagans and the People That Used to Love Them by Diana Rajchel (Moon BooksAn Imprint Of John Hunt Publishing. Paganism is a creative pursuit, an encounter with reality, an exploration of meaning and an expression of the soul. Druids, Heathens, Wiccans and others, all contribute their insights and literary riches to the Pagan tradition. Moon Books invites you to begin or to deepen your own encounter, right here, right now), a practical guide for ending pagan relationships, an account of the author's experience of speaking to strangers.
The Ugly Wife is Treasured at Home by Melissa Margaret Schneider (Potomac), an expose of love and sex under Maoist rule in China.
Strangers Have the Best Candy by Margaret Meps Schulte (Choose Art)
Self-published books wre eligible for the first time, so it's good to see this last one maikng it onto the shortlist.
The first winner of the prize was Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Nude Mice. Other winners throughout the years have included How to Avoid Huge Ships, Cooking with Poo, and last year's How to Poo on a Date.
The Bookseller's diarist Horace Bent said: "This is one of strongest years I have seen in more than three decades of administering the prize, which highlights the crème de la crème of unintentionally nonsensical, absurd and downright head-scratching titles. Ultimately, it is a stunning collection of books. Let other awards cheer the contents within, the Diagram will always continually judge the book by its cover (title)."
The winner of the prize will be selected by a public vote hosted on the Bookseller's sister consumer site, We Love This Book. Voting closes at midnight on Friday 20th March, with the winner announced on Friday 27th March. There is no prize for the winning book, but the person who nominated the book to the Diagram committee will receive the traditional "passable bottle of claret".
Votes can be cast on the We Love This Book website.
