The WH Smith Literary Award was an award founded in 1959 by
British high street retailer
W H Smith to "encourage and bring international esteem to authors of the British Commonwealth". Originally open to all residents of the
UK, the
Commonwealth and
Ireland, it later admitted foreign works in translation and works by
US authors. The final three winners were Americans (
Philip Roth,
Donna Tartt and
Richard Powers), and 2005 was the award's final year.[1]
The "W H Smith Illustration Award" ran from 1987 to 1994.
The "W H Smith Mind-Boggling Book Award" for children's literature ran from 1993 to 1996.
For a few years, W H Smith also offered a children's book award. The judges were children between nine and twelve, and the intention was to promote books which were "accessible to children in content and price, as well as offering a gripping read."[2]