Announcement of the winner for International Booker Prize 2020, scheduled on May 19, has been postponed until late summer due to the coronavirus outbreak that has caused severe disruption in book sales worldwide. The decision is to ensure that readers get hold of the six shortlisted books before the final announcement.
In a statement issued recently on its website, the Booker Prize Foundation has said, “Steps are being taken to ensure that the authors, translators, publishers and book trade are best supported at this difficult time.”
The new announcement date has not been finalized yet but will be communicated soon. Promotion of the shortlisted books will resume in the lead-up to the revised date.
The shortlisted books are:
1. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar (Farsi – Iran), translated by Anonymous
2. The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara (Spanish – Argentina), translated by Iona Macintyre and Fiona Mackintosh
3. Tyll by Daniel Kehlmaan (German – Germany), translated by Ross Benjamin
4. Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (Spanish – Mexico), translated by Sophie Hughes
5. The Memory Police by Yoko Ogowa (Japanese – Japan), translated by Stephen Snyder
6. The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld (Dutch – Netherlands), translated by Michele Hutchison
