El Man booker it is considered by many, if not all, as the most prestigious and coveted award in British literature. This year, by surprise and against all odds, it went to the Californian writer Paul Beatty for his novel The Sellout. As you may have already noticed, Beatty is not British, but for three years any English-speaking writer can submit his works to the literary competition.
This time, therefore, is the first time that an American writer has won the award in its 48-year history. The favorite for all bookmakers was Madeleine thienBy Do not say we, of Canadian origin, and who would have also managed to make history.
In this novel by the well-known Canadian writer, who is also a professor at the prestigious Columbia University, he shows us a satirical approach to modern race relations in the United States. For the members of the jury it is "A novel of our time", in which the writer has embroidered "racial and political taboos with wit, impetus and claw".
The Man Booker is endowed with a prize of 50.000 pounds, which in exchange is about 55.970 euros and which gives any writer enormous prestige. For Beatty this award represents an important boost to his literary career and in which four novels already appear; The Sellout, slumberland, Tough y The White Boy Shuffle, which was his literary debut in 1996.
Did you know Paul Beatty before he was awarded the Man Booker?. If the answer is negative, you already have an excuse in the form of an award to read The Sellout.