2023 Booker Prize speculation Showing 251-300 of 1,356

[Cindy]

The John Banville is, I think, more in his mystery series that he used to write under the pseudonym Benjamin Black. Not Booker-y at all.

[Ben]

Cindy wrote: "The John Banville is, I think, more in his mystery series that he used to write under the pseudonym Benjamin Black. Not Booker-y at all."

He has a mystery out next month, but he's also released The Singularities during this year's eligibility period. It's more of a Booker book, but deeply references his older work. I think its chances will depend on whether the judges are familiar with (and like) his backlist.

[Cindy]

Ah yes. I completely forgot about The Singularities. I am a Banville fan but that novel did not engage me at all.

[Alwynne]

Cindy wrote: "Chain Gang All-Stars is getting a ridiculous amount of buzz over here but does not at all sound like my kind of thing. I suspect I will only read it if it is longlisted."

The ARC is currently on UK Netgalley but the description didn't appeal to me either.

[WndyJW]

You’re not the only to feel way, Cindy. The reviews for The Singularities on GR aren’t as good as I expected for a Banville novel.

[Cindy]

I was really surprised Wendy. I truly love his writing, but The Singularities almost felt as though someone else had written it.

[WndyJW]

He’s 77 so not past his prime. That’s too bad. I hope he writes another, better book so he doesn’t end his career with a dud.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I just read Max Porter’s Shy - it feels like a book which would have made last year’s Booker but which another year’s panel may consider too short. I loved it though.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jo]

Have we discussed In Memoriam by Alice Winn as a Booker contender yet?

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

We briefly discussed on the WP speculation

[Jo]

It's glorious! Well I hope to see it make it. I would be very very happy to see it do well. Have you read it GY?
An excellent partner to The New Life. I see the authors due to discuss their novels soon.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I have not

Seems to have some overlap with The World and All That it Holds also

[Cindy]

In Memoriam is very high on my to-read list. Just waiting for my copy. Hearing wonderful things.

[BookerMT2]

I really admire Hungry Ghosts. But as a big dog lover I'm afraid I struggled a lot with violence against dogs. Just a personal thing really but I wish I hadn't had to read those bits.
I do think, though, that is will end up on at least the long list and it is very positive to see fiction from the Caribbean getting such a lot of coverage.

I did really like Victory City and, for me, this was Rushdie back to near his best. So much to take from it and funny in places too. No idea if it will make the long list but I hope it does.

The stand out novel I've read to date this year has to be Cuddy. I thought it was utterly brilliant. I understand how difficult it was for the author to finish it but it really felt like a novel into which an author has put absolutely every last drop of sweat and all of their heart and soul. Is he a "Booker" type author though?

[WndyJW]

I agree with everything you said here, BookerMT2.

I haven’t yet read Cuddy, but it’s on it’s way to me now. I think Ben Myers is more of a Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction writer, in fact he won that prize for The Gallows Pole, but perhaps Cuddy will get him at least longlisted for the Booker.
I’m reading two of his books this weekend, The Offing and The Perfect Golden Circle, both I’ve had since they were published, but haven’t gotten to yet.
Myers writes historical fiction, prose poetry, crime fiction, nature writing, and music biographies. Benjamin Myers

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I feel the same re the dogs but Kevin is a dog lover too and felt the violence was needed.

I enjoyed Victory City a lot even if it is a bit Rushdie by ChatGPT aim places it was great fun.

Cuddy to me should be at least longlisted for the Booker - and I would not be unhappy to see win. I feel it’s a real step forward from his previous fiction.

[WndyJW]

I loved The Gallows Pole and Pig Iron just as much. I’m not a fan of the crime fiction books, too grisly for my taste, but yet I loved Beastings, which is pretty raw.

[Emmeline]

I found The Offing quite sentimental, so I'll need to be convinced about anything new by him.

[WndyJW]

I didn’t get far in The Offing and now I’m reading Checkout 19. I started listening to it in audio, which is brilliant, it’s read by Claire-Louise Bennett herself. Halfway through chapter the narration switches from 1st person to 3rd person omniscient so I wanted to read that section to see if I missed something in the audio.

Now I’ll go back to The Offing, though I’d rather stick with Checkout 19. The books are like chalk and cheese. Checkout 19 is elegant, sharp, crystalline. The Offing is like warm pudding, nothing wrong with warm pudding (Jello Pudding, not pudding as a catch all for dessert,) I like pudding.

[Cindy]

I finally read Birnam Wood. I have to say that I was extremely disappointed by it. I cannot imagine this being longlisted (and agree with the decision of the WP judges not to include it there). It is a strange mash-up of literary fiction and psychological/ecological thriller, with not one likeable character (or maybe just one, but maybe not). It is such a departure from The Luminaries (which I loved) that I almost am unsure that the two novels were written by the same person.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I think it was the same author - she just jointly authored with James Paterson (but unlike Dolly Parton and Bill Clinton has not yet admitted it).

[Cindy]

Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer wrote: "I think it was the same author - she just jointly authored with James Paterson (but unlike Dolly Parton and Bill Clinton has not yet admitted it)."

OUCH!

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

It does have a jigsaw with Golden three Retriever puppies though so there’s that - and I gave the book one additional star for each puppy.

[Cindy]

Well, I agree that that's worthy...

[WndyJW]

My son’s friend just got a Golden Retriever puppy. There is no creature in this world as cute as a Golden Retriever puppy.

[WndyJW]

I think Cuddy might be Ben Myers best book yet. I’m really enjoying it. It’s a nice blend of prose poetry, passages from St Cuthbert biographies, and lovely narrative.

And I’m not just saying that because I ordered a signed copy from Book Corner in Halifax, England expecting one of the hundreds Ben Myers signed, but received a copy inscribed to me by Ben Myers with thanks for being a loyal reader. This is why I love indie presses and indie book stores. They remember loyal buyers and readers.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I think it’s significantly better than Gallows Pole
Of course he is no longer with a small press though

[Kathleen]

WndyJW wrote: "…now I’m reading Checkout 19. I started listening to it in audio, which is brilliant, it’s read by Claire-Louise Bennett herself..."

Thanks, Wendy, for suggesting the audio version. I picked it up from my library, and loved listening to the author. I liked just listening to her voice more than the actual book.

[WndyJW]

I think it might be the voice that has seduced me too, Kathleen, but I do like the book as well.

I agree, GY. I loved The Gallows Pole, but Cuddy is an interesting blend of styles.
Right, he’s now with Bloomsbury, not Bluemoose, but I ordered the signed copy from The Book Corner, an independent bookstore.

[Ruben]

I finished In Ascension today - it would definitely make it to my longlist and even shortlist, but not sure about the jury's appetite for science fiction...

[WndyJW]

In Ascension sounds very good, Ruben! SciFi and Spectulative Fiction was listed before. What was the book about the group of people living in the wild and being monitored after the earth was made almost uninhabitable? It was on the Booker lists in the last 5 years.

The New Wilderness.

[Nadine in California]

Ruben wrote: "I finished In Ascension today - it would definitely make it to my longlist and even shortlist, but not sure about the jury's appetite for science fiction..."

This sounds irresistible to me, as does New Wilderness. I'm currently reading The Mountain in the Sea and enjoying it very much. I was never interested in science fiction until about 10 years ago, and now I can't get enough of it. My level of excitement over this reading epiphany was so extreme I knew I could never utter a peep about it IRL ;)

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

I loved MacInnes previous novel

As for Diane Cook …. Stick to her short stories is my advice.

Sci fi of course had won the Booker twice with a Atwood.

[Ruben]

Nadine in California wrote: I'm currently reading The Mountain in the Sea and enjoying it very much

This sounds very good...as does MacInnes previous novel!

[Ruben]

Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer wrote: "Sci fi of course had won the Booker twice with a Atwood."

And it should have been 3 with Cloud Atlas in 2004 :)

[WndyJW]

I second GY’s advice, The New Wilderness was not that good.

[Cindy]

I third it. What Wendy said.

[Roman Clodia]

Ha, yes, The New Wilderness was full of absurdities!

[WndyJW]

It was silly as I recall.

[Cindy]

I just finished In Memoriam. Wow. Easily the best book I've read thus far this year. I hope it gets the recognition it deserves.

[Jo]

Cindy wrote: "I just finished In Memoriam. Wow. Easily the best book I've read thus far this year. I hope it gets the recognition it deserves."

Completely agree, Cindy! Just WOW. I am seeing the author on 19 May and I can't wait.

Possibly the perfect novel.

[switterbug (Betsey)]

Are y'all talking about In Memoriam, by Alice Winn? It's on my WL.

[Cindy]

Yes we are.

[switterbug (Betsey)]

Thank you, Cindy!

[BookerMT2]

Recently finished Old God's Time by Sebastian Barry and my thoughts are as follows.

It was bit like deciding to go on a trip in an old classic car that you love (not that I actually have one) but that you haven't taken out for a while. So you're really looking forward to the journey but to start with the engine stutters and misfires and progress is slow and a bit erratic though there's no denying the beauty of the scenery along the way.
The first part of the trip is uphill and it takes a while for the old car to really get going. But then you're suddenly over the peak and on the way downhill to your destination and the old engine is now ticking over nicely and you are, what can only be described, as purring along. The sun's out and all is good with the world. But as you near your destination the engine splutters a bit again and you wonder if perhaps you haven't put enough petrol in the tank to get to where you want to be. But just in time things pick up and you arrive only for the weather to deteriorate and for there to be nowhere to park.

[Cindy]

I think that's a brilliant and very apt analogy!

[BookerMT2]

Also just finished All Things That We Lost by Jyoti Patel.

Much anticipated first novel which I thought was decent enough but not breathtaking in any way. I found Avani and Nik to be well drawn out characters but I just couldn't find enough depth in the story somehow.
Also there were times when I thought, oh here comes another bit about racism, and along it followed. This did seem a bit clumsy at times.
I'll be interested to see what the author does next as there's a lot of potential here but I'd be surprised to see this one on the longlist.

[BookerMT2]

Obviously had too much spare time in the last couple of weeks.

Obviously discussed on the WP section so I won't spend too long here on Wandering Souls.

I enjoyed it and it brought back memories of the Vietnamese Boat people about whom I'm ashamed to say I had forgotten. I do think there a some issues with he book though, mainly for me to do with the three different narrative strands. I just didn't feel they worked and didn't seem to fit together quite as fluidly as I might have hoped.
Having said that it is a very emotional book and the main part of the narrative works well. I'm not sure what the history of titles listed for the WP making the Booker lists is like but this one does deal with the emotive subject of refugees which is current and important so could well be considered.
Just not sure there won't be a dozen better books this year.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer]

That’s excellent on Old God’s Time

I largely agree on Things We Lost - lots to like but some big flaws also and like you I was never sure the story coalesced.

[WndyJW]

I like that analogy, BookerMT2, it’s a great way to write a review.