Americans Ferris, Fowler on Booker Prize shortlist

FILE - In this Tuesday Oct. 12, 2010 file photo, British author Howard Jacobson, displays his book 'The Finkler Question', winner of the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2010, following the announcement at central London. Three British writers, two Americans and an Australian are finalists for the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction. The British nominees, announced Tuesday, are Ali Smith's "How to Be Both," Howard Jacobson's "J'' and Neel Mukherjee's "The Lives of Others." The U.S. is represented by Joshua Ferris' "To Rise Again at a Decent Hour" and Karen Joy Fowler's "We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves." Australia's Richard Flanagan is nominated for "The Narrow Road to the Deep North." This is the first year writers of all nationalities have been eligible for the Booker, previously open only to authors from Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth of former British colonies. The winner of the 50,000-pound ($80,000) prize will be announced at a ceremony in London on Oct. 14. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, file) FILE - In this Tuesday Oct. 12, 2010 file photo, British author Howard Jacobson, displays his book 'The Finkler Question', winner of the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2010, following the announcement at central London. Three British writers, two Americans and an Australian are finalists for the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction. The British nominees, announced Tuesday, are Ali Smith's "How to Be Both," Howard Jacobson's "J'' and Neel Mukherjee's "The Lives of Others." The U.S. is represented by Joshua Ferris' "To Rise Again at a Decent Hour" and Karen Joy Fowler's "We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves." Australia's Richard Flanagan is nominated for "The Narrow Road to the Deep North." This is the first year writers of all nationalities have been eligible for the Booker, previously open only to authors from Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth of former British colonies. The winner of the 50,000-pound ($80,000) prize will be announced at a ceremony in London on Oct. 14. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis, file)

By Associated Press September 9, 2014 2 min read

LONDON (AP) – Three British writers, two Americans and an Australian are finalists for the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction, open to U.S. authors for the first time.

The British nominees, announced Tuesday, are Ali Smith’s dual-narrative story “How to Be Both,” Howard Jacobson’s futuristic dystopia “J” and Neel Mukherjee’s Calcutta-set “The Lives of Others.” The U.S. is represented by Joshua Ferris’ cyber-identity tale “To Rise Again at a Decent Hour” and Karen Joy Fowler’s unusual family story, “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves.”

Australia’s Richard Flanagan is nominated for “The Narrow Road to the Deep North,” a wartime love story.

Bookmaker William Hill made Jacobson – who won the prize in 2010 for “The Finkler Question” – and Smith the joint 3/1 favorites.

High-profile authors who did not make the cut from the 13-book long-list included Irish-American writer Joseph O’Neill, for “The Dog,” and David Mitchell, for “The Bone Clocks.”