This one is the Post-9/11 South Asian Allegorical One. The protaganist is Changez; his girlfriend is Erica. When, after September 11, America changes (ummm... Erica... Changez... get it?) our anti-hero becomes the reluctant fundamentalist of the title. The novel is a single evening's monologue, as Changez recounts his tale to a traveler visiting Pakistan.Good review: … Continue reading Booker Prize Roundup: The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Shorthand for this one: The Favorite. (Alternative shorthand: The White-Man-Teaches-The-Unwashed- To-Love-Literature Book)Mister Pip is set on the South Pacific island of Bougainville in the early 90s. As rebels approach and the white folks flee, only "Pop Eye" Watts remains to teach the local students using the only book he can find, Dickens' Great Expectations. The … Continue reading Booker Prize Roundup: Mister Pip

Ian McEwan's On Chesil Beach was the bookie's favorite when the longlist for the Booker Prize was announced, but with the release of the shortlist that honor has moved to Mister Pip.On Chesil Beach is the Establishment Choice in this year's nominees. McEwan has been longlisted five times; he won 1998's prize for his novel … Continue reading Booker Prize Roundup: On Chesil Beach