Indian author and columnist Arundhati Roy’s latest work of fiction—The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness— has been longlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize. Roy, who made a comeback to the world of fiction after a long haul of 20 years, is one of the 13 novelists who made to the list for the £50,000 prize, which is now in its 49th year.
Roy’s previous book—God of Small Things—had won the same award exactly two decades back in 1997 after garnering phenomenal praise.
Roy – the only author in the current list to have won the Booker before – is listed for her novel about an Indian transgender woman, which judges called a “rich and vital book”.
Advertisement
Two Pakistan-based authors Mohsin Hamid and Kamila Shamsie also made to the list with their works Exit West and Home Fire. British author Zadie Smith’s most awaited Swing Time was spotted along with Ali Smith’s Autumn.
The first-time authors Emily Fridlund and Fiona Mozley also make the cut. The longlist includes four US writers, one year on from the prize going to its first American recipient.
They include veteran writer Paul Auster, recognised - at the age of 70 - for 4 3 2 1, his first novel in seven years.
The list was chosen from 144 submissions published in the UK between 1 October 2016 and 30 September 2017.
Advertisement
Here’s the complete list:
4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster (US) (Faber & Faber)
Days Without End by Sebastian Barry (Ireland) (Faber & Faber)
History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund (US) (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (Pakistan-UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
Solar Bones by Mike McCormack (Ireland) (Canongate)
Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor (UK) (4th Estate)
Elmet by Fiona Mozley (UK) (JM Originals)
The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy (India) (Hamish Hamilton)
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (US) (Bloomsbury)
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie (UK-Pakistan) (Bloomsbury)
Autumn by Ali Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
Swing Time by Zadie Smith (UK) (Hamish Hamilton)
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (US) (Fleet)
