Booker Prize 2019: Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie on Shortlist, Here are Other Competitors

After a long wait, the Booker Prize has announced the shortlist for the 2019 Man Booker Prize. In a tweet posted on September 3, the award-giving organization has released a video with the judges explaining what made them choose the books that have made it to the shortlist. The tweet reads, “We are pleased to announce our #BookerPrize2019 shortlist. Watch what our judges had to say about the six selected books. #BookerPrize2019 #FinestFiction #BookLoversDay #shortlist #announcement.”

Six books have made it to shortlist for the Booker Prize 2019, which include The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann, Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo, Quichotte by Salman Rushdie, 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak and An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma.

This list was chosen from 151 novels published in the UK or Ireland between October 1, 2018, and September 30, 2019, by a panel of five judges. The shortlisted authors will receive £2,500 (approx. Rs 2.17 lakh) each and a special bound edition of their book. The winner for this year will be announced on October 14 and will receive a cash prize of £50,000 (approx. Rs 43.51 lakh).

It is to be noted that both Salman Rushdie and Margaret Atwood have won the prize in the past. While Rushdie won the coveted prize in 1982 for Midnight's Children, Margaret was awarded the Booker in 2000 for The Blind Assassin.