Every month (well, except for when they double up over the summer ...) 31 German book critics are polled, asked to vote for their top new titles, and the September SWR-Bestenliste is now out.
The list is notable for the lack of agreement -- the top title got a mere 46 points (a critic's top choice gets 15 points, second choice 10, third six, fourth three, so this barely rated more than three (out of thirty-one !) top choices, among the lowest totals I can ever recall for this list). But it's also noteworthy that, while six of the eight German titles selected are also finalists for the German Book Prize, the top choice, Hans Pleschinski's Thomas Mann novel, isn't.
The list is notable for the lack of agreement -- the top title got a mere 46 points (a critic's top choice gets 15 points, second choice 10, third six, fourth three, so this barely rated more than three (out of thirty-one !) top choices, among the lowest totals I can ever recall for this list). But it's also noteworthy that, while six of the eight German titles selected are also finalists for the German Book Prize, the top choice, Hans Pleschinski's Thomas Mann novel, isn't.