Wondering which Booker shortlisted book should win? The ones to read? The ones to avoid? Look no further as we give a fulsome and frank rundown of all six shortlisted titles. We’re joined by podcast guests Sarah Oliver and Phil Chaffee for a proper, no-holds-barred book club discussion.
Listen in to find out the things we loved, and the things we didn’t. The books we thought deserved their place on the shortlist, and those that didn’t. And finally our pick to win the prize.
We also play a game of ‘Snog, Marry, Avoid’ with past Booker winners (‘snog’, you liked it; ‘marry’, you loved it, you would spend the rest of your life with it; ‘avoid’, you didn’t finish it, or you read it but you wish you hadn’t).
And finally we pick our favourites from past Booker winners, the ones we would choose above all the rest.
Book recommendations
The Booker shortlist
- Burnt Sugar by Avni Doshi
- This Mournable Body by Tsitsi Dangerembgwa
- Real Life by Brandon Taylor
- The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste
- The New Wilderness by Diane Cook
- Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
Other recommendations
- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
- Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
- The Children’s Book by A. S. Byatt
- Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
Keep listening
Want to hear more from Sarah? Listen to episode 13 where she joined us to discuss sci-fi classic We by Yevgeny Zamyatin.
Want to hear more from Phil? Try episode 16, Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman, or episode 75 on Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld, both of which always make us smile.
Notes
Watch Barneys, Books and Bust Ups: 50 Years of The Booker Prize on BBC4
Find out more about The Booker Prize.
Download a list of all past winners of the Booker and Booker International prizes, perfect for inspiration for your next book club read.
Browse this amazing series of Booker Readers’ Guides, so useful for book clubs. They have notes on every long- and shortlisted book going back to 2009.
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