Booker longlist includes Amis, snubs Carey

from The Guardian

Justine Jordan
Friday August 15, 2003

Martin Amis may be pleasantly shocked when he peruses the longlist for the 2003 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, which was announced today. Despite rumours that the author would again find himself snubbed by a Booker panel, his forthcoming novel Yellow Dog - currently garnering much advance dispraise - is a surprise contender among the 23 books longlisted for the prize. This year's list was chosen from 107 submissions and 10 call-ins.

Previous winner Peter Carey is not so lucky: his upcoming My Life as a Fake has been overlooked, along with autumn fiction from literary heavyweights JG Ballard and Jim Crace.

In their place the longlist boasts some new and unfamiliar names. The presence of Monica Ali's first novel, Brick Lane, which catapulted her on to the Granta Best of Young British Novelists lists, is no surprise. But the list also finds room for lesser-known first novels from DCB Pierre (Vernon God Little, a high-octane tale of a Texas high-school massacre), Gerard Donovan (Schopenhauer's Telescope, a history of genocide according to a small-town baker) and Clare Morrall (Astonishing Splashes of Colour, a heart-wrenching novel about a Birmingham woman desperate for a child, and a mother).

This year's line-up also encompasses established authors beyond the metropolitan scene, such as Carol Birch, Julia Darling and John Murray. The standard premier-league names on the list include Margaret Atwood, Graham Swift and Caryl Phillips.

Another surprise inclusion (and a sign of the continued growth of crossover book) is Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Narrated by a 15-year-old with Asperger's Syndrome, it is children's book, adult novel and thriller wrapped up in one dustjacket.

"This is a strong and diverse longlist, with a pleasing component of new names," comments chair of judges Professor John Carey. "It reflects the passionate preferences of the individual judges, and it will be very tough reducing it to a shortlist."

This year's panel comprises writer, academic and broadcaster Professor John Carey (Chair); writer, academic and critic AC Grayling; mountaineer and journalist Rebecca Stephens; novelist, broadcaster and presenter Francine Stock; and novelist, biographer and literary critic DJ Taylor.

The shortlist will be announced on Tuesday September 16 and the winner on Tuesday October 14 at an awards ceremony in the Great Court of the British Museum, London, and will be broadcast live on BBC2 and BBC4.

William Hill have already installed JM Coetzee as 6/1 favourite to become the first person to win the award three times. Amis and Bragg are 8/1 joint second favourites, followed by 10/1 Margaret Atwood and Graham Swift; 14/1 Monica Ali, Carol Birch, Zoe Heller, Tim Parks and Caryl Phillips; 16/1 Barbara Gowdy, Shena Mackay and Julie Myerson; 20/1 Mark Haddon and Jonathan Raban; 25/1 Julia Darling, Gerard Donovan, Damon Galgut, Francis King, DCB Pierre and Barbara Trapido; 33/1 Clare Morrall and John Murray.

The longlist in full