Apple May Back Orange Prize

Though the deal would be uncharacteristic of the way the innovative California-based computer company does business, according to The Telegraph, the people who brought us the Mac, the iPhone and the iPad are considering taking over the sponsorship of The Orange Prize for Fiction. The Prize, which awards distinction in fiction written by women, lost their sponsorship earlier this year when mobile phone operator Orange merged with T-Mobile. From The Telegraph:

At the time, literary circles joked that Apple or BlackBerry could step into the breach to preserve the fruity theme, and quipped that they wanted to be able to "compare Apples with Oranges". Now, in evidence that life is, if not stranger, then at least as strange as fiction, The Sunday Telegraph can reveal that Apple has had talks with the award organisers.

The shortlist for the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction is here.