New Delhi: As the literary world gears up for the prestigious Man Booker Awards - to be announced in London on October 10 - speculations are fast gathering steam.
While the finalists’ list– decided by a five-member jury after a six-hour debate – surprised some, others believed that all the “write” stuff has been selected.
The choices were contentious, with some of the most hotly touted entries failing to make it to the top.
David Mitchell - whose Black Swan Green had been a favourite - and Australia's two-time Booker winner Peter Carey’s Theft: A Love Story - were among the shockers.
Andrew O'Hagan's Be Near Me, another critical favorite, also was omitted.
So, who finally made the cut?
A childhood tale set in Libya, a 19th-century Australian saga and a story of love and loss in World War II were among the finalists.
The six books shortlisted by a panel of judges are: In the Country of Men, Hisham Matar's semi-autobiographical first novel about childhood in Moammar Gadhafi's Libya; The Secret River, Kate Grenville's tale of life in an Australian penal colony; The Night Watch, British writer Sarah Waters' novel about characters whose fates intertwine during World War II.
The Inheritance of Loss, Indian writer Kiran Desai's cross-continental saga set in New York and India; Carry Me Down, the story of an unusual boy, by Irish-Australian novelist M J Hyland; and Mother's Milk, a portrait of a rich but dysfunctional family by English writer Edward St. Aubyn.
The prize, open to writers from Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth of former British colonies, was founded in 1969 and long known as the BookerPrize.
It was renamed when the financial services conglomerate Man Group PLC began sponsoring it four years ago.
The shortlist for the prize, founded in 1969, was chosen from an original entry of 112 books. The award guarantees the winner instant literary fame and a place in bestseller lists around the globe.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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