DBC Pierre wins the Man Booker Prize 2003

NEWS RELEASE
Wednesday 15 November

For Immediate Release

DBC Pierre wins the Man Booker Prize 2003

First time novelist DBC Pierre wins £50,000 with a satirical tale of contemporary America

Australian-born author DBC Pierre was yesterday (Tuesday 14 October) named the winner of the 2003 Man Booker Prize for Fiction with Vernon God Little, published by Faber & Faber.

Vernon God Little tells the story of a fifteen year old boy, who stands accused of a high school massacre. An unforgettable innocent, Vernon is surrounded by a cast of grotesque adults, all of whom are determined to see him as a scapegoat for their own failings. DBC Pierre's unique novel has been described as like Flannery O'Connor on an overdose of amphetamines and cable television.' DBC Pierre is an internationally published cartoonist, who was born in Australia, grew up in Mexico and now resides in Ireland.

Chair of the judges, Professor John Carey describes Vernon God Little as ‘A coruscating black comedy reflecting our alarm but also our fascination with modern America’. Over and above his prize of £50,000, DBC Pierre is guaranteed an increase in sales and recognition worldwide. The winner of the 2002 Mann Booker Prize Yann Martel, has gone on to sell over 1,000,000 copies of his book The Life of Pi. Each of the six shortlisted authors, including the winner, receives £2,500 and a designer-bound edition of their book.

The judging panel for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2003 is: writer, academic and broadcaster Professor John Carey (Chair); writer, academic and critic A.C. Grayling; record-breaking mountaineer and journalist Rebecca Stephens, MBE; novelist, broadcaster and presenter Francine Stock; and novelist, biographer and literary critic D.J. Taylor.

The other novels shortlisted for the 2003 Man Booker Prize were: Brick Lane by Monica Ali, Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, The Good Doctor by Damon Galgut, Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller and Astonishing Splashes of Colour by Clare Morrall.

ENDS

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