The winner of the 2008 John Llewellyn Rhys Prize is The Secret Life of Words: How English Became English by Henry Hitchings. The book traces the routes of modern English, and beat Booker prizewinner Aravind Adiga, who was also on the shortlist.
This important prize is awarded in honour of the writer John Llewellyn Rhys, who was killed in action in the Second World War. It was founded 65 years by John Llewellyn Rhys's young wife, also a writer, who began the award to honour and celebrate his life.
Past winners include Margaret Drabble (1966), William Boyd (1982), Jeanette Winterson (1987), Ray Monk (1990), Matthew Kneale (1992) and David Mitchell (1999). Last year’s winner was Sarah Hall for The Carhullan Army. More information
An A-Z of surprising words by Henry Hitchins.
