London - American author Marilynne Robinson Wednesday won this year's Orange Prize for Fiction for her novel Home, which tells the story of a prodigal son as he returns home to make peace with his past.

The prize, worth 30,000 pounds (49,000 dollars), recognizes a work of fiction written by women around the world.

Home is Robinson's third novel in nearly 30 years, and follows Housekeeping (1981) and Gilead (2004), which won the Pulitzer Prize.

The 62-year-old author beat British first-time novelist Samantha Harvey, who was in the running for The Wilderness, a story about a man with Alzheimer's disease.

The shortlist also included US authors Ellen Feldman and Samantha Hunt, Irish writer Deirdre Madden and Pakistani-born British author Kamila Shamsie.

Fi Glover, chair of the judges, described the winning book as "a kind, wise, enriching novel, exquisitely crafted."

"We were unanimously agreed - it is a profound work of art," she said at the award ceremony for the 14th Orange Prize in London's Royal Festival Hall.

Robinson was described by the Sunday Times last year as "the world's best writer of prose."

Home centres around Jack, the prodigal son of the Boughton family, who returns home after 20 years looking for refuge.

An alcoholic who cannot hold down a job, Jack is perpetually at odds with his surroundings and with his traditionalist father, even though he remains the Boughton's most beloved child.

"It's a work that enriches your life with its exquisite prose," said Glover.

"It's a book of understanding and compassion that never leans towards mawkish sentimentality, in fact its message is quite stern."

Accepting the award, Robinson said: "I'm so grateful. This is such a wonderful event and a wonderful institution. It certainly is the most elegant, brilliant platform for women's literature that I can imagine."(dpa)