Marlon James Wins Man Booker Prize

Marlon James, the Jamaican novelist, has won the prestigious Man Booker Prize for Fiction for “A Brief History of Seven Killings,” his fictional retelling of the 1976 attempted murder of Bob Marley.

James, 44, is the first Jamaican author to win the prize in the British award’s 47 years. It’s also the first for his publisher, Oneworld Publications. He was presented the prize by the Duchess of Cornwall.

‘It is a crime novel that moves beyond the world of crime and takes us deep into a recent history we know far too little about. It moves at a terrific pace and will come to be seen as a classic of our times,” said Michael Woods, chairman of the judging committee.

James’ other works includes two novels, “John Crow’s Devil” (2005) and “The Book of Night Women” (2009).

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Last year, the prize was opened to any novel published in Britain and written in English. In previous years, winners had to come from Britain, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Commonwealth nations.

The Man Booker International Prize was established in 2005, biannually rewarding an author for a body of work originally written in any language as long as it was widely available in English. Underlining the importance of translation, the £50,000 prize is divided equally between the author and the translator.

AWARDS RECEIVED BY JAMES

2009 – National Book Critics Circle Award finalist for The Book of Night Women
2010 – Dayton Literary Peace Prize (Fiction) for The Book of Night Women
2010 – Minnesota Book Award (Novel & Short Story) for The Book of Night Women
2013 – Silver Musgrave Medal from the Institute of Jamaica
2014 – National Book Critics Circle Award finalist for A Brief History of Seven Killings
2015 – Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Fiction for A Brief History of Seven Killings
2015 – OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature (Fiction category winner), for A Brief History of Seven Killings
2015 – Man Booker Prize for Fiction for A Brief History of Seven Killings

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PAST WINNERS OF MAN BOOKER PRIZE