Achmat Dangor, Sarah Hall, Alan Hollinghurst, David Mitchell, Colm Tóibín
and Gerard Woodward are the six authors shortlisted for the Man Booker
Prize for Fiction 2004, the UK’s best known literary award. The shortlist
was announced by the chair of judges, Rt. Hon Chris Smith MP, at a press
conference at the Man Group offices in London today.
The six shortlisted books were chosen from a longlist of 22 and are:
Achmat Dangor Bitter fruit (Atlantic Books, £10.99)
Sarah Hall The electric Michelangelo (Faber & Faber, £10.99)
Alan Hollinghurst The line of beauty (Picador, £16.99)
David Mitchell Cloud atlas (Sceptre, £16.99)
Colm Tóibín The master (Picador, £15.99)
Gerard Woodward I’ll go to bed at noon (Chatto & Windus, £12.99)
Sarah Hall, Alan Hollinghurst, David Mitchell, and Gerard Woodward are English, Colm Tóibín is Irish, and Achmat Dangor is South African.
Most commentators were surprised at the choices for the shortlist, for example the articles Surprise all round at Booker shortlist, in The Guardian and Mitchell tipped for Booker as first-timers fail to make grade, in The Independent. David Mitchell is placed as the clear favourite to win the overall prize.
The winner will be announced on Tuesday 19 October at an awards ceremony
in the Royal Horticultural Halls in Westminster, London and will be
broadcast live on BBC TWO and BBC FOUR.