Best of the Booker
And the winner is... . It was the result everyone was expecting, seeing that it is both a brilliant novel and one of the few whose author appears in the (I say that, but I'm not a regular reader, perhaps is featured every other week). Visibility is a great advantage in a public vote. You may remember last month's item on The Culture Show about The Best of the Booker. We asked the inhabitants of a Scottish village to read the six shortlisted titles and to pick the one they thought should win - they chose - and I have to say that I agreed with them. Farrell's novel looks at the Indian rebellion of 1857 with humour, humanity and intelligence, following the experiences of multiple characters in the months before and during the siege. In many ways it resembles another great 20th century novel written about the 19th century, , by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. The Leopard follows an aristocratic family who live through the upheaval of Italian Reunification, the story being narrated by the patrician but clear-eyed Prince of Lampedusa, who sees that his world is disappearing. Both books were unfashionable when they were published - seeming traditional rather than experimental, as well as focusing on historical events seen through the eyes of the privileged. The Leopard found a wider audience through the but The Siege of Krishnapur hasn't had the boost to its profile that the big screen brings. Even though Farrell's novel hasn't won, hopefully the simple fact of being included on the Best of the Booker shortlist will encourage people to read it.
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