Kevin Perry, Executive Editor

November 13, 2007

Howard Davies spoke in the Hong Kong Theatre last Tuesday about the themes being discussed by contemporary novelists, drawing on his experiences as Chair of the Booker Prize judging committee.

In his talk, entitled ‘Judging the Booker Prize: what concerns novelists in English today (and what does not)’ he noted that of the 110 novels competing for this year's award, war and immigration seemed to be the most prevalent themes. In particular, World War II has become a common setting for a large number of contemporary articles.

Davies expressed some discomfort with this fact, suggesting that the War was simply being used as a “laboratory” in which to test human relationships, rather than being dealt with fully on its own terms.

In total, 37 of the novels were historically based, with 69 contemporary novels and four set in the future. He estimated that the 110 competing books represented around a quarter of "literary novels" published in the year

He also highlighted notable areas which he felt novelists were neglecting to discuss, citing UK politics, campus romances, China and the world of business. He pointed to Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities and Glengarry Glen Ross (reviewed in PartB on page 9) as examples of the business world being critically mirrored in the literary world.

He also took the opportunity to highlight the fact that the LSE has more in common with the Booker Prize than many might think. Two of the authors competing were alumni, while Hari Kunzru's My Revolutions features a memorable sex scene set in the corridors of the School.

After the talk he was questioned about his public spat with Jeanette Winterson and the importance of the award on a global scale. Fellow judge Wendy Cope, who was in the audience, aided him in answering a specific question about getting published.