Paul Murray

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By Steven McIntoshEntertainment reporter

The novels that will compete for this year's Booker Prize have been revealed, with all six of the authors short-listed for the First Time .

All the short-listed authors receive £2,500. One is from the UK, two from Ireland, two from the US And One from Canada.

The Books " showcase the breadth of what world literature can do" Esi Edugyan , who chairs the judging panel, said.

The Winner , announced on 26 November, will receive £50,000.

The prestigious prize is open to works of fiction written in English by authors anywhere in The World and published in the UK or Ireland.

The Shortlist in full:

The Bee Sting follows an Irish family in crisis, while Prophet Song, also set in Ireland, examines A Mother of four who faces a terrible choice.

Study For Obedience sees A Woman drop everything to be with her elder brother following the collapse of his marriage, while This Other Eden is a tale of racism on an isolated island off the coast of Maine.

Western Lane explores an immigrant father's attempts to raise His Family as a Single Parent , while If I Survive You is A Collection of linked stories focused on one family's tempest-tossed journeys in Jamaica and Florida.

'Relentless truth-telling'

Twice-short-listed novelist Edugyan is joined on The Panel by actress and writer Adjoa Andoh , poet, lecturer, editor and critic Mary Jean Chan, author and professor James Shapiro and actor and writer Robert Webb .

Edugyan said: " The Best novels invoke a sense of timelessness even while saying something about how We Live now. Our six finalists are marvels of form.

" All are fuelled by a kind of relentless truth-telling, even when that honesty forces us to confront dark acts. And yet however long we may pause in The Shadows , humour, decency and grace are never far from hand. "

The judges chose The Final six from 13 long-listed titles - known as the Booker dozen - which were selected from 163 published between October 2022 and September 2023.

Last Year 's prize was won by Sri Lankan writer Shehan Karunatilaka , for his novel The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida.

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Source of news: bbc.com