On Thursday 27 July the Man Booker Prize revealed the ‘Man Booker Dozen’ of 13 novels in contention for the 2017 prize. The prize is the leading literary award in the English speaking world, and has brought recognition, reward and readership to outstanding fiction for over four decades.
Don’t miss the chance for your reading group to get involved in this year’s prize – visit our Noticeboard by 31 August to find out more.
The longlist of 13 books was selected by a panel of five judges. Chaired by Baroness Lola Young, the panel consists of: literary critic, Lila Azam Zanganeh; the Man Booker Prize shortlisted novelist, Sarah Hall; the artist, Tom Phillips CBE RA; and the travel writer, Colin Thubron CBE.
The Man Booker ‘Dozen’
- Paul Auster (US) – 4 3 2 1 (Faber & Faber)
- Sebastian Barry (Ireland) – Days Without End (Faber & Faber)
- Emily Fridlund (US) – History of Wolves (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
- Mohsin Hamid (Pakistan-UK) – Exit West (Hamish Hamilton)
- Mike McCormack (Ireland) – Solar Bones (Canongate)
- Jon McGregor (UK) – Reservoir 13 (4th Estate)
- Fiona Mozley (UK) – Elmet (JM Originals)
- Arundhati Roy (India) – The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness (Hamish Hamilton)
- George Saunders (US) – Lincoln in the Bardo (Bloomsbury)
- Kamila Shamsie (UK-Pakistan) – Home Fire (Bloomsbury)
- Ali Smith (UK) – Autumn (Hamish Hamilton)
- Zadie Smith (UK) – Swing Time (Hamish Hamilton)
- Colson Whitehead (US) – The Underground Railroad (Fleet)
You can download excellent Readers’ Guides for each of the books to find out more, and also read exclusive extracts from each title.
The judges’ view
Chair of the 2017 judges, Baroness Lola Young, says:
“Only when we’d finally selected our 13 novels did we fully realise the huge energy, imagination and variety in them as a group. The longlist showcases a diverse spectrum — not only of voices and literary styles but of protagonists too, in their culture, age and gender. Nevertheless we found there was a spirit common to all these novels: though their subject matter might be turbulent, their power and range were life-affirming – a tonic for our times.
Together their authors — both recognised and new — explore an array of literary forms and techniques, from those working in a traditional vein to those who aim to move the walls of fiction".
Shortlist and winner
The shortlist of six books will be announced on Wednesday 13 September. The shortlisted authors each receive £2,500 and a specially bound edition of their book.
The 2017 winner will be announced on Tuesday 17 October in London’s Guildhall. The ceremony will be broadcast by the BBC.
The winner of the 2017 Man Booker Prize receives £50,000 and can expect international recognition. In the week following the 2016 winner announcement, sales of The Sellout by Paul Beatty increased by 658%. To date over 360,000 print copies of the Oneworld edition have been sold, and 26 foreign language rights deals have been secured – 19 of which were sold since his win.
Get involved
We have an exclusive opportunity for six reading groups to shadow the prize shortlist, reading and reviewing one of the books before the judges choose a winner. If you would like to apply, please visit our Noticeboard.
Listen to the brilliant Man Booker Prize podcast audio series on Soundcloud with Joe Haddow from Radio 2.
Have you read any of the longlisted books? Share your thoughts with us on Twitter and Instagram using #FinestFiction and #ManBooker2017, or click on a title above to leave a review.
For more information, visit the Man Booker Prize website.
