MAN BOOKER PRIZE LONGLIST OFFERS DIVERSE RECOGNITION

The Man Booker Prize revealed

its longlist early Thursday, including 13 novels and some of the biggest titles and names to be released this year. The list includes: 4321 by Paul Auster, Days Without End by Sebastian Barry, History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund, Exit West by Mohsin Hamid, Solar Bones by Mike McCormack, Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor, Elmet by Fiona Mozley, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy, Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, Autumn by Ali Smith, Swing Time by Zadie Smith, and The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead. The prize has only been open to American authors for the last four years, with four making the longlist this year, including Auster, Fridlund, Saunders and Whitehead. It also features four U.K., two Irish, two Pakistani and one Indian writer, making for diverse recognition. Chair of judges Lola Young said, via The Guardian, “The longlist showcases a diverse spectrum – not only of voices and literary styles but of protagonists too.”