It’s that Man Booker International longlist time of year, and the baker’s dozen of semi-finalists has just been announced. This is a prize for a book or short or long fiction translated into English and published in the UK in the previous year, with the generous £50,000 purse equally split between author and translator. Translationista is honored to have a book on the longlist this year in the excellent company of many esteemed colleagues. Behold the ‘Man Booker Dozen,’ listed alphabetically by author:
• Laurent Binet (France), Sam Taylor, The 7th Function of Language (Harvill Secker)
• Javier Cercas (Spain), Frank Wynne, The Impostor (MacLehose Press)
• Virginie Despentes (France), Frank Wynne, Vernon Subutex 1 (MacLehose Press)
• Jenny Erpenbeck (Germany), Susan Bernofsky, Go, Went, Gone (Portobello Books)
• Han Kang (South Korea), Deborah Smith, The White Book (Portobello Books)
• Ariana Harwicz (Argentina), Sarah Moses & Carolina Orloff, Die, My Love (Charco Press)
• László Krasznahorkai (Hungary), John Batki, Ottilie Mulzet & George Szirtes, The World Goes On (Tuskar Rock Press)
• Antonio Muñoz Molina (Spain), Camilo A. Ramirez, Like a Fading Shadow (Tuskar Rock Press)
• Christoph Ransmayr (Austria), Simon Pare, The Flying Mountain (Seagull Books)
• Ahmed Saadawi (Iraq), Jonathan Wright, Frankenstein in Baghdad (Oneworld)
• Olga Tokarczuk (Poland), Jennifer Croft, Flights (Fitzcarraldo Editions)
• Wu Ming-Yi (Taiwan), Darryl Sterk, The Stolen Bicycle (Text Publishing)
• Gabriela Ybarra (Spain), Natasha Wimmer, The Dinner Guest (Harvill Secker)
One of the many great things about this longlist is the number of women authors included on it (close to half), which I couldn’t be happier to see. This year’s judges include Lisa Appignanesi, Michael Hofmann, Hari Kunzru, Tim Martin, and Helen Oyeyemi. More information about the prize, longlist, and the books on it can be found on the Man Booker International Prize website.
So enjoy digging into the books on the longlist and start placing your bets as to which ones will also be shortlisted – we’ll find out about that on April 12. (The winner will be announced on May 22.)
Big congratulations to all who made the longlist, and especially to Frank Wynne, the translator of two books on the list!