The Ondaatje Prize of the Royal Society of Literature isn’t one of the world’s biggest literary prizes — £10,000 as against £50,000 for the Man Booker and €100,000 for the International Dublin Literary Award — but it’s always of keen interest to Deskbound Traveller, as it’s awarded for “a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry evoking the spirit of a place”. The short list for the 2018 prize is due to be published next week (April 18); the winner will be announced on May 14. Watch this space for more news.