Booker Prize 2021 Winner Reaction

The winner of the 2021 #BookerPrize has been announced! Let's all react to Damon Galgut no longer being the "Booker Bridesmaid," run down the presentation of the prize, and go over the other books on the shortlist one last time.

Further viewing 🎥:

Titles mentioned 📚:
A Passage North, Anuk Arudpragasam
The Promise, Damon Galgut
No One Is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood
The Fortune Men, Nadifa Mohamed
Bewilderment, Richard Powers
The Great Circle, Maggie Shipstead

My husband made a cookbook! Check it out here:

But wait, there's more!

[rosaliemaasdorp]

Loved your video. As a South African I am thrilled that Damon Galgut won,

[jorgem]

I read The Promise and liked it very much. I am glad it won. I was surprised about the section that they picked to read because it comes towards the end of the book. A Passage North is a very difficult book to get into. The book is described as a journey to a funeral, but it goes on and on before the journey starts. I am trying to finish it.

[ScullyPop]

Hey Greg! Great video about the Booker Prize.

[brittabohlerthesecondshelf]

I think I'm the only person who didn't like The Promise. I downloaded a kindle-sample and after those 20 pages I decided: nope. The sentence that made me go bleergh was: 'Her disappointment was almost palpable; like a secret fart.'

[dqan]

Not surprised or disappointed about Galgut's win. Happy even. Looks like our library copy will be available in about a month. Going to request that they get A Passage North tomorrow. They're sending Matrix my way in about a month. No one has Lockwood's book checked out, so maybe I'll check it out after I finish Hell of a Book.

[shawnbreathesbooks]

I am catching up on your videos and I certainly love this one! Can’t wait to hear what you think of The Promise and the Arudpragasam! I believe he is 33, by the way. 😍

[judybrown]

The excerpt from The Fortune Men grabbed me the most of all the readings.

[dmurfval]

My hold on The Promise just came through yesterday. Looking forward to getting to reading it. I had a friend who had two Welsh Terriers and they had cool names too, can't remember what they were called tho.

[annegibson]

Good morning. I am happy that The Promise won. Having read all thirteen books I think it was the strongest. I sort of see a common theme of grief and loss that runs through the six books. If I am correct I think it is interesting that as we emerge from a pandemic that would be a common theme.
Have a great day

[jacquelinemcmenamin]

I’d recommend audio for The Promise as it’s read in a South African accent. My favourite was Great Circle but The Promise and Bewilderment came a close second. The book I didn’t read was No One is Talking About This. The book I DNFd was The Fortune Men.

[janethansen]

I DNF'd A Passage North, which tells me I probably need a more plot driven book to keep me engaged. I thought The Promise would win, but my favourite reading experience was Great Circle. Now... on to other books.

[GemReadsALot]

I was hoping for great circle to win but I don’t mind The Promise winning it’s a good book

[stephenqualtrough]

Anuk"s book A 9assage North has a subplot about his estranged girl friend. He muses on this relationship with this estranged lover who really prefers women. So this is a complicated modern romance as he muses on the chances of rekindling something with her (after a surprise email coming in after a very long period of silence.) So it touches on modern gay life in Sri Lanka as the book rolls on

[hedgiecc]

Yay! I think the right book won 😀

I did think Bewilderment would win as it’s so topical, but even though it’s brilliant I felt The Promise was in technique, structure and execution the better book. Don’t worry too much about the planetary sections in B - they aren’t weird in context, and also very short. They largely act as punctuation or commentary on the main text so easily skipped or skimmed if you find them bothersome.

I’m pretty much in agreement with you on the others - I’m dying to read The Fortune Men, Great Circle, and A Passage North (in that order). NOITAT I will probably skip but props to the author for her original, arresting and decorative take on self promotion.

[stephenqualtrough]

Hi Going through the Bookers and as for Bewilderment the astrophysicist father has the job of processing data from far flung planets outside the solar system, the information emanating from the space telescope. He is involved with making computer mock ups of the individual planet under inspection ' and what it is is likely to be in.reality in.terms of geography and potential for life.So with the aid of his tablet he and his son can "visit " the planet's surfacrs. The "visits" quieten his son so this is not as out there as it might seem. ;in fact I think the author juggles his ideas brilliantly in this book. As I commented somewhere the plot summary is likely to inspire Bewilderment but don't let that put ypu off. Richard Powers has this reader believing it is Science fact not Sci fi fantasy being read This is not my Booker favourite but possibly the hardest of all to pull off successfully, but Mr Powers accomplishes this with aplomb. A great read for me, despite early misgivings. I agree 100 per cent with you about the Patricia Lockwoid. . I am only upto page 50 so far ! The deformed bee mentioned in the Booker excerpt is the least of it. I agree with your other comments. Bravo. Great reaction

[KierTheScrivener]

I am excited for my library to get a copy of The Promise. Also the Fortune Men when it publishes in Canada. I was hesitating with The Great Circle because it's very long and unless I am really excited I normally cap it at audiobooks more than 18/20 hours and this was 25. But I am more excited it might be a 2022.

This was my first year really following along and it was fantastic. I read two of the long list that didn't make the short list (and really loved them), then read two and half of the short list that I didn't love. Bewilderment doesn't clearly say the his son has Autism but follows autistic (especially the more socially recognized/stigmatized) traits to a t. And if you don't want spoilers I will jump down (but you said you weren't going to read it so I am assuming you don't mind)

A Passage North I really wanted to love and the ideas were interesting but it was very slow and mediative about the world, and I often like this pacing but I think I struggle to connect to a world built so closely to a male perspective. Because all the women in his life were fascinating from his grandmother and her carer to the queer feminist advocate he is in love with. But we always had to returm to him and his everyman didn't allow me to connect with him and found him and the majority of the book quite boring. Interestingly enough, he read from the last 10 pages which was one of the parts I felt emotional by.

And I have had a similar not too enthralled by Lockwood's writing but find her purpose interesting. I wasn't enjoying it but I did want to finish it and then it was gone because I had a 7 day loan instead of 21 day loan. I'll get it back in three months.


Spoilers for Bewilderment

The last scene is where he drowns in a river and his father has the last emotional scene. It felt like a slap. The representation throughout was mediocre but to fridge an autistic character for no reason but the emotions of the father. It also didn't feel like the the proper escalation of the plot. It kinda came out of nowhere. The writing was beautiful and parts of it made me emotional but the ending just undid it all.


Spoilers for Bewilderment

[rainbowskygayandproud]

the promise by Damon Galgut is a great book one of the two books that deserved to win the other one is bewilderment by Richard powers it would have been great if they have both win because it would been deserved unlike the other two books that win the booker before who did not deserve to win I also recommend reading in a strange room by Damon but I recommend reading everything he has written I also would love it of you would gave bewilderment a chance Greg and if you read bewilderment and enjoy it I then would recommend watching Eric’s interview with Richard powers