What a to-do there has been about this year's Man Booker Prize. First, it was the shortcomings of the longlist, which, according to Britain's Telegraph, had "overlooked some of the year's most exciting releases". Then, of course, it was all about the shortlist, which had too many Americans on it (three) and two worryingly young women, one of whom was analysed almost to death after saying she wrote her book on her phone and who both wrote about nature in a lyrical way and were inevitably accused of "overwriting". The biggest conundrum, however, was the way the big names evaporated. The longlist had been a mix of newcomers and heavy-hitters, with the latter expected to sail through to the next round: Arundhati Roy, Zadie Smith, Sebastian Barry. Of the lions from the pre-American era on the longlist, only Mohsin Hamid and Ali Smith â three times nominated, thoroughly deserving â made the cut. Paul Auster is a big name in po-mo circles, of course, but American and thus a newcomer in Booker terms. They couldn't say their books weren't good enough. This shortlist was simply perverse. Thus spake the pundits. Continue reading at 'Stuff'
[ Stuff | 2017-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
Publisher adept at balancing the demands of literature and commerce, and a notable writer on artIn his prime, with his coloured shirts, red braces, bright bow ties and macho cigars there were few more flamboyant London publishers than Tom Rosenthal, who has died aged 78. But the extravagant top... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An outstanding Irish writer of fiction will be chosen to promote Irish literature around the worldAs Ireland becomes the first country to exit the eurozone bailout programme, one of its writers can look forward to a period of prosperity with the creation of a laureateship award worth €150,000... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2013-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen, Charlotte Williams and Philip Stone Publication Date: Thu, 28/07/2011 - 09:21 Julian Barnes, Sebastian Barry and bookies favourite Alan Hollinghurst are seen by the trade as the Man Booker Prize for Fiction frontrunners after the longlist was revealed on Tuesday (26th... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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