“Bleak” and “Depressing” Novel Wins Man Booker

Irish novelist Anne Enright, 45, has been named the winner of the £50,000 Man Booker Prize for Fiction for her novel The Gathering, published by Jonathan Cape.

Howard Davies, chair of judges, said the novel was both “bleak” and “depressing” going on to say it was a “very readable and satisfying novel.”

Enright didn’t disagree with the assessment, telling Radio 4’s Today that if they’re looking for a cheery read, “they shouldn’t really pick up my book … my book is the equivalent of a Hollywood weepie.”

Also nominated:

• Darkmans by Nicola Barker (Fourth Estate)
• The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (Hamish Hamilton)
• Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones (John Murray)
• On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan (Jonathan Cape)
• Animal’s People by Indra Sinha (Simon & Schuster)