Sarah Moss (2025)
- Craig Wilson
- Oct 1
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 5
The recipient of the fifth TILA is Sarah Moss for her novel Ripeness. The announcement was made during the 2025 Cheltenham Literary Festival. This year, the value of the TILA has been increased to £15,000.
Born in Glasgow and educated at Oxford, Moss’ academic life has led her to teach at multiple distinguished universities, including Canterbury, Reykjavik, Warwick and currently Dublin. She has also produced a steady and substantial body of literary work including scholarly monographs, eight novels and two memoirs, and has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Her initial interest was in the Romantics and Victorians, but her more recent fiction has reflected the effects of Brexit and the social consequences of Covid. Her novels are usually short, precise and powerful and show a ferocious discipline and commitment to honesty. Her observations are always acute but never unkind, and often surprisingly funny.
She is a dedicated runner, and her love of and need for the outdoor life is a major motivator in her stories. She also has a droll understanding of motherhood and small children. Her stories have been set in a range of specific locations, including an archaeological dig in Greenland, a remote Hebridean island, and Northumberland, where a devastating Iron Age re-enactment takes place. Her themes are serious but her touch always subtle.
Her most recent novel, Ripeness, moves between her heroine’s youthful experiences on the shores of Lake Como, and her more mature life as an older woman in Ireland. Along the way, Moss raises issues of isolation and belonging, family, refugees, migration and national identity, and how much tolerance should be expected in friendship. Sprinkled lightly with the poetry Moss loves, the story unfolds gracefully, allowing the reader to ponder the many layers of meaning in its title.
Sarah Moss is the ultimate quiet achiever, and deserves widespread acclaim for the outstanding quality of her writing.
