The Man Booker prize, which is not without its politics, controversies and critics has, nevertheless furnished me with some of my most memorable reads recently: Eleanor Catton’s The Luminaries, which led me to her wonderful The Rehearsal, Ruth Ozeki’s A Tale For The Time Being, How To Be Both by Ali Smith, Niall Williams’ The History Of The Rain. Gorgeous, unique and powerful – occasionally experimental – voices.
The year’s list (the covers for which look amazing) are:
Bill Clegg (U.S.), Did You Ever Have a Family
Anne Enright (Ireland), The Green Road
Marlon James (Jamaica), A Brief History of Seven Killings
Laila Lalami (U.S.), The Moor’s Account
Tom McCarthy (U.K.), Satin Island
Chigozie Obioma (Nigeria), The Fishermen
Andrew O’Hagan (U.K.), The Illuminations
Marilynne Robinson (U.S.), Lila
Anuradha Roy (India), Sleeping on Jupiter
Sunjeev Sahota (U.K.), The Year of the Runaways
Anna Smaill (New Zealand), The Chimes
Anne Tyler (U.S.), A Spool of Blue Thread
Hanya Yanagihara (U.S.), A Little Life
