Books

Who's who in Booker nominations

Kate Weston | Wednesday 7 September, 2011 10:59

When the 2011 Booker Prize shortlist was announced yesterday, it was a huge shock to find out that Alan Hollinghurst’s A Stranger’s Child hadn’t made the cut. He had been a favourite to win—with his previous book The Line of Beauty winning the prize in 2004. However he was bumped off the list but Julian Barnes—previously nominated three times, but yet to win the prize – staying in the running with A Sense of an Ending.

Here is a brief summary of what’s on this year’s shortlist:

Pigeon English
Stephen Kelman
Focusing on Harrison Opoku, an eleven year-old boy, who has just arrived in England from Ghana. Harrison becomes interested in watching the local gang and a pigeon that visits his balcony every day. It becomes evident that Harrison’s curiosity is leading him to danger.

Snowdrops
AD Miller
A dark novel set in Russia. A British lawyer, Nick, falls in love with Russian woman, Masha, and loses himself to the Russia’s dangerous underbelly. Years later he is confessing his secrets.

Jamrach’s Menagerie
Carol Birch
This novel is set in East London in 1857, when Jaffy Brown finds himself rescued from the jaws of an escaped circus tiger by a Mr Jamrach, who then sends him on a perilous voyage to the Dutch East Indies.

The Sisters Brothers
Patrick DeWitt
Set in Oregon in 1851, the novel follows two professional killer brothers, sent to California to kill Hermann Kermitt Warm.

Half Blood Blues
Esi Edugyan
A German man disappears after being arrested in a Café in Berlin in the 1940s. Years later his friend Sid goes back to find out what really happened to him.

The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes
Barnes’ fourth attempt at the prize, this novel focuses on Tony Webster re-examining his past after a lawyer’s letter throws his life into disarray.

The Man Booker Prize winner will be announced on Tuesday 18th October, so that leaves just over a month to read all six!

We’re not linking any of these to online shops – go support your local book shop

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