The Man Booker Prize 2015 – The Shortlist

So finally the wait is over and we now have the confirmed shortlist for the Man Booker Prize 2015. The final six authors and the books that will battle it out to win the Man Booker Prize 2015.

1, A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James. Published by One World Publications.

2. Satin Island by Tom McCarthy. Published by Jonathan Cape.

3. The Fishermen by Chigozie Obiama. Published by One.

4. The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeer Sahota. Published by Picador.

5. A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler.

6. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara Published by Picador.

From the longlist we have lost some really good books that could so easily have found their way onto the shortlist.

We say goodbye to.

• Did You Ever Have A Family by Bill Clegg
• Sleeping on Jupiter by Anuradha Roy
• The Green Road by Anne Enright
• Lila by Marilynne Robinson
• The Chimes by Anna Smaill
• The Illuminations by Andrew O’Hagan
• The Moor’s Account by Laila Lalami

The shortlist was announced on Tuesday 15 September by the Man Booker panel of judges. So many excellent books failed to make the shortlist among them The Chimes by Anna Smaill and The Green Road by Anne Enright both would have made good challengers had they made it onto the shortlist.

Make a date of Tuesday 13 October when the final decision is made and the winner will be announced. All six books on the shortlist are all excellent candidates in their own right and the winner will be eagerly anticipated. It could be a close call with three or four coming close to winning. But in the end my feeling along with many others is that A Little Life by Hanya Yanaghara will come through as the winner. It is my choice and my book of 2015 and even now I still keep thinking of this outstanding novel that still manages to divide opinion between those that love the book and those that could not handle the storyline. It is that sort of book. If you have not read A Little Life then go and buy a copy and see why I and many others think this really is THE book of 2015.

I would of course welcome your thoughts on the final selection for the shortlist, do you agree with the panel, what would be your final six? and your winner? Well come 13 October we will all find out for sure.

Happy reading.