Culled from the Globe and Mail:Indian writer Kiran Desai won Britain's prestigious Man Booker Prize Tuesday for The Inheritance of Loss, a cross-continental saga that moves from the Himalayas to New York City.
Desai, daughter of novelist Anita Desai, had been one of the favourites for the $93,000 prize.
Born in 1971 and educated in India, England and the United States, Desai published her first novel, Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard, in 1998.
The 35-year-old, who was considered to be among the front-runners for the prize, held off the challenge of five other nominees, including the favourite Sarah Waters for her novel The Night Watch.
The other finalists were In The Country Of Men, Hisham Matar's semi-autobiographical first novel about childhood in Moammar Gadhafi's Libya; The Secret River, Kate Grenville's tale of life in a 19th-century Australian penal colony; Carry Me Down, the story of an unusual boy, by Irish-Australian novelist M.J. Hyland; and Mother's Milk, a portrait of a rich but dysfunctional family by English writer Edward St. Aubyn.
**Picture:
Winner of the Booker Prize, Indian author Kiran Desai displays her book after a ceremony at The Guildhall in London. (Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP)
8 comments:
Oh God!! I Looove books! Thank you so much for letting me know abt this book! I will buy it for sure! Great blog you have! I am a foodie and crazy abt books!:))
Welcome, foodie's hope! I so look forward to checking out your blog -I'm crazy about food and books, too! :)
@Lotus and Foodie: God, what ELSE is there to life apart from books, food and music? culture and barrier busting stuff!
great news, Lotus!! am so proud!
I saw this on the news last night. It's not generally the kind of book that I'd read but I might give it a try. The thing is with books, I generally don't mind what the subject is as long as it's well written. I think it's an amazing achievement - the youngest women ever to win it at 35! I think we need to work harder to get the age down next time.
lotus! quick question. why is it called the MAN booker prize?
I haven't read any of her books although i remember you reviewing one ...
Hi, Anoc!!!
I second how you feel! Have you read anything by her mother, Anita Desai? Anita Desai was nominated for the Booker prize thrice but never won it!
Hi, act!
True, while I have my favorite genres - my favorite thing to look for in a book is what I can learn from it and the language.
Hi, sruthi!
haha,rather incongruous title, wouldn't you say? :) I think it's the name of a group of companies that sponsors the prize, but you knew that already! :))
Hi, sasgirl!
I would be thrilled to have your company! I am booked for the readings on the 24th. Kiran Desai will be reading along with Anita Rau Badami, Kate Grenville of "Secret River" fame and Stephanie Johnson who wrote "John Tomb's Head". All great books! But,be warned, on the 24th Mybindi is organizing a reading by Gautam Malkani of "Londonstani", so if you're a fan of his, you might want to go there instead. However, I so hope you come with me to the readings, it'll be so much fun!!!
I can mail you more details tonight if you like.
Hullabaloo is a favourite of mine so I am definitely interested in reading her latest offering!
Hi, Heather
Haven't read the "Hullabaloo" one yet, but I have it here, so I'll probably read it after "Inheritance". Do you have a review for "Hullabaloo" on your blog?
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