The shortlisted titles for this year's Booker Prize is out and... Tan Twan Eng's The House of Doors isn't one of them. However, the authors who made the cut this year have never been shortlisted before, while Tan has been longlisted three times and shortlisted once.
There are two debuts on the shortlist; there is one British, one Canadian, two Irish and two American authors," a statement on the Prize's website reads. "Although full of hope, humour and humanity, the books address many of 2023’s most pressing concerns: climate change, immigration, financial hardship, the persecution of minorities, political extremism and the erosion of personal freedoms."
Interesting. Now, let's see who were shortlisted for the Prize...
The Bee Sting by Paul MurrayHamish Hamilton
9780241353967
As a father's business falters, he builds a doomsday bunker in the woods. His wife sells her jewellery online while dodging the attentions of a cattle farmer. The daughter has started binge-drinking, and the son plans to run away. The Barnes family is in trouble. Where did it all go wrong, and will there be an end to their problems?
What the Judges Say: The Bee Sting is the very funny, sad and truthful story of the Barnes family, set in contemporary Ireland and written with considerable wit and compassion. The characters are unforgettable. They persist with hope and are capable of startling moments of love and generosity, despite their myriad flaws and problems.
Western Lane by Chetna MarooPicador
9781529094626
A coming-of-age novel that explores how an Indian family in England copes with grief and loss. Eleven-year-old Gopi has been playing squash since she was old enough to hold a racket. When her mother dies, her father enlists her in a quietly brutal training regimen, and the game becomes her world. Slowly, she grows apart from her sisters as her life gradually revolves around the sport.
What the Judges Say: Western Lane is a mesmerising novel about how silence can reverberate within a family in the aftermath of grief. ... The language in this novel is truly something to be savoured. Western Lane contains crystalline prose that also feels warm and tender, which can be a difficult balance to strike.
Prophet Song by Paul LynchOneworld
9780861545902
In a dystopian future, a far-right party comes to power in Ireland. The novel focuses on a middle-class family, the Stacks, and the impact this regime has on them. The nightmare begins for Eilish, a microbiologist and mother of four, when the secret police come a-calling, wanting to interrogate her husband, a trade unionist. As Ireland descends into civil war Eilish does all she can to keep her family safe.
What the Judges Say: "[Prophet Song] is a shocking, at times tender novel that is not soon forgotten. It is propulsive and unsparing, and it flinches away from nothing. This is an utterly brave performance by an author at the peak of his powers, and it is terribly moving."
This Other Eden by Paul HardingHutchinson Heinemann
9781529152548
Inspired by the true story of the inhabitants of Malaga Island off the coast of Maine, this novel tells the story of Apple Island, off the coast of the United States where castaways have built a home. More than a century later, their descendants remain, along with an eccentric, diverse band of neighbours. The arrival of a missionary on the island sets off a chain of events that leads to their eviction from the only home they had ever known.
What the Judges Say: While many readers will be struck by Harding's inimitable voice, many more will also be drawn to his beautifully etched portraits of the inhabitants of Apple Island. Though set in the past, it's impossible to ignore the novel's contemporary resonance, especially in its exploration of how those in power, convinced of their righteousness, abuse others whose identities and way of life don’t conform to their own."
If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery4th Estate
9780008501211
In 1979, a Jamaican couple flee to Miami, but America is less than welcoming. Trelawny, their youngest son, grows up in a society that regards him with suspicion and confusion. Their eldest son Delano's longing for a better future for his own children is equalled only by his recklessness in trying to secure it. As both brothers navigate through life, they find themselves pitted against one another. Will their rivalry tear their family apart?
What the Judges Say: "From the heartbreaking to the hilarious, Escoffery effortlessly conducts the various voices, contradictory in their perspectives, their dreams and desires, while wrestling with the age-old immigrant dilemma - who are my people and where do I belong?"
Study for Obedience by Sarah BernsteinGranta Books
9781783789931
A woman moves from the place of her birth to a remote area to be housekeeper to her brother, whose wife has just left him. Soon after she arrives, a series of unfortunate events occurs. She notices that the community's suspicion about incomers in general seems to be directed particularly in her case. Inside the house, although she tends to her brother and his home with the utmost care and attention, he begins to fall ill...
What the Judges Say: "Study for Obedience is an absurdist tale about how a stranger’s arrival in an unnamed town slowly unearths deep undercurrents of xenophobia, and it feels very like an allegory for the rise of ideological radicalism today. It is also a stirring meditation on survival."
The Booker Prize winner will be revealed on 26 November. Who do you think will win?
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