Names of a Hare Secures Spot on 2026 HNSA Awards Longlist in Adult Fiction Category
Bernice Barry is on a roll with another longlisting for her novel The Names of Hare – this time she’s in line for the richest individual prize in the region.
Awarded by the Historical Novel Society of Australasia, in partnership with the ARA Group, to novels where the majority of the story is set more than 50 years ago, the Historical Novel Prize recognises Australian and New Zealand historical novelists writing for Adults and Children & Young Adults, with a total prize pool of $155,000.
In a media release about the longlist, HNSA commented on this year’s crop of strong literary heroines and a preponderance of histories that acknowledged stories typically marginalised in mainstream narratives.
HNSA Chair Elisabeth Storrs said the 2026 longlist demonstrated the power of historical novels to bring history to life by illuminating forgotten, erased or neglected histories.
Set in Cornwall, Barry’s book imagines what life would be like for a neurodiverse healer at the height of the witch trials. Bernice Barry said, ‘After receiving a copy of Lorna Doone as a school prize when I was ten, I was more interested in the mysterious woman who lived on the cliff than in any of the main characters. I wondered how she ended up there and where she came from, so when I decided to write a book set in Cornwall, and discovered that Blackmore’s “Mother Meldrum” was based on a real woman who came from the region, things fell into place – more so when I learned she had many different names, just like the protagonist in my own book!’
This year’s judging panels comprise industry professionals and prominent historical novelists. The Adult category was chaired by Linda Funnell, with panellists David Whish-Wilson, Renée Otmar and Robyn Cadwallader.
Judges for the Adult Prize said: ‘The entries showcased an exhilarating range of historical periods and geographical settings … Often there was a focus on little-known corners of history, revealing fresh insights into the lives of those who came to colonial-era Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, into the lives of those on the other side of the globe, and into queer histories. A number of entries highlighted how easily misconceptions could arise between people of different cultures, and how history could become myth, and myth be presented as fact.’
Alongside Bernice Barry, Jeffery Buchanan (The Birds Began to Sing), Lauren Keegan (The Woman in the Seal Skin), Lauren Keenan (The Other Catherine), Wayne Marshall (Henry Goes Bush), Fiona Kelly McGregor (The Trap), Heather Rose (A Great Act of Love), Allison Rushby (Slashed Beauties) and Francesca de Tores (Cast Away) also made the longlist.
Also announced today is the opening of the Readers’ Choice Award. For the second year running, HNSA newsletter subscribers can vote for their favourite Adult category novel, with the winning author receiving a $5,000 cash prize.
The ARA Historical Novel Prize has been made possible through the generous patronage of ARA Group which is committed to supporting the arts and literature.
The shortlists will be revealed on 23 September, with the winners announced on 15 October at a ceremony in Sydney.
