Waiter's novel competes for prize

A 27-year-old north London waiter has become a contender for a £60,000 book prize with his first novel.

Ross Raisin, from Finsbury Park, is on the Dylan Thomas prize longlist for his book God's Own Country.

Mr Raisin, who was born in Yorkshire, is one of 16 young writers competing for the fiction and poetry prize.

The youngest writer on the list was Caroline Bird, 24, from Leeds, nominated for her poetry collection Trouble Came to the Turnip.

Submarine by Joe Dunthorne, Blood Kin by Ceridwen Dovey and The Orientalist and the Ghost by Susan Barker are also competing for the award, given to writers under 30.

The winner will be announced in November. The first winner of the biennial prize was Welsh author Rachel Trezise in 2006, for her book of short stories Fresh Apples.

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