THE BEST BOOKER PRIZE BOOKS ACCORDING TO ME

[@GemofBooks]

Loved seeing your list matey. Can’t say I agree with them all, but who doesn’t love a list?!

[@Shellyish]

Lists are the best! :)

[@HannahsBooks]

What a joy to see your video. Although I have not followed awards incredibly closely lately, I so agree with your idea of wanting to be part of the conversation. Just before I watched your video, I had just been thinking that I really wanted to read A Month in the Country. The Wolf Hall series is just so absolutely fantastic, isn’t it! I’m always surprised by how often I want to reread them, too.

[@Shellyish]

Thank you, Hannah. I'd be very curious as to what you make of A Month in the Country. I found the read quite quiet and calming.

[@deborajohnson5717]

I really didn’t think I would like Trees. I loved it!

[@Shellyish]

It's one of my favorite books of all time! :)

[@pwcinla]

My favorite Booker Winners: The Remains of the Day, Life of Pi, Disgrace, The Blind Assassin, The Line of Beauty, Last Orders. Least fave: The Sellout. Worst winner by a great author: Amsterdam, by Ian McEwan who deserved to win for previous gems like Atonement or Enduring Love. His win felt like a make-up prize for past Booker mistakes.

[@GunpowderFictionPlot]

This was great Shelly. I don't think it will surprise you or anybody really, but i was one of those people who got to the halfway point of Cloud Atlas and said no.

[@Shellyish]

Why am I not surprised?!

[@quinntessentialreads6496]

Wow that's really interesting about The Trees having Twin Peaks vibes!! Maybe that's why i liked it so much... My faves from that list are Oryx & Crake, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, Cloud Atlas, A Tale for the Time Being, The Blazing World, and A Little Life. I definitely skew 21st century as well.

[@Shellyish]

A Tale for the Time Being popped up over and over again. Maybe it's time for me to make a purchase. :)

[@barbaramanickas6580]

Another great video

[@Shellyish]

I appreciate that

[@charlottemolloy]

Thanks Shelly! I had some in common with you. And I firmly want in on the Eleanor Catton hype train! I'm going to start off with Birnam Wood (who knows we may see that on the actual longlist!) and then head back to The Luminaries after hearing you speak about it! I really hope I enjoy Catton's writing 😁

[@Shellyish]

I'm VERY curious as to how you'll get along with Catton's writing. Please keep me updated. :)

[@stephenn3727]

Thank you Shelley!

[@Shellyish]

You are so welcome!

[@officialejprice]

lovely video as always!!

[@Shellyish]

Thank you!!

[@gs547]

Very interesting. I have been looking around for good book recommendations. I was surprised that you included 2 Elizabeth Strout books. I have read her Olive Kitteridge and found it very good. I was not going to read any more, but I guess I should look into Ms Strout's other novels. I am also a fan of the Cromwell books of Hilary Mantel. I just received a used hardbound copy of The Mirror and the Light with a cellophane dust jacket that really looks good. The book so far is just as marvelous as the prior 2 books in the series. I am so happy with it. Glad you liked it. Makes me confident that I will too.

[@Shellyish]

The Cromwell books are absolutely excellent!

[@kimswhims8435]

I love The Lucy series, I've listened to the audiobooks more than once and the writing is so subtle, more is revealed with each reading. I love Olive too, but Olive is more overt. Cloud Atlas would definitely be on my top bookers, It's one of my favourite all times. The Wolf Hall trilogy is amazing, I think it's a series I could reread, the first one from the page, it was interesting but heavy going until I got used to it, loved the audiobook trilogy and the TV series.. The Handmaid's tale I've also read more than once from the page, listened to the audiobook, watched the tv series etc. I saw Margaret Atwood in conversation at a local theatre with a local interviewer just before everything closed down for the pandemic, in Feb 2020. She was talking about The Handmaid's Tale and Oryx and Crake and what we could be facing at the time, almost like she was gazing into a crystal ball. I've had The Luminaries for ages, once I've read some on this years booker list (after the announcement) I think I'll try to get back to that one. Loved Birnam Wood this year. A great list, thanks for sharing. 😀

[@Shellyish]

Thank you for sharing, Kim! I own Olive (both books) and still have yet to read her. Don't you love how Olive popped up on the Lucy series. That tickled me. Wolf Hall deserves every kind word and high praise it gets, truly. It's so brilliant. I've heard different things about Birnam Wood so I'm glad to see you liked it since we seem to have similar tastes. :)

[@lifeasandrea280]

The handmaids tale and a little life are some of my favorite books and Cloud atlas is my favorite movie. Maybe I should check out more booker winners, we have similar tastes 😊😅

[@Shellyish]

You may really love Wolf Hall and / or The Trees both are excellent.

[@CharlieBrookReads]

I haven’t ever read Wolf Hall. The way you talked about has actually made me intrigued. I loved The Trees too ❤ Loved seeing your top picks from the Booker longlist. I think I am going to make this vid too 🤩

[@Shellyish]

I think you may LOVE Wolf Hall! :) I look forward to your version of this video. :)

[@AmalijaKomar]

Thank you Shelley. Some of my favorites among the winners are McEwan for Amsterdam, Life of Pi by Martel and dark and difficult Shame from J. M. Coetze, later the Nobel winner. From this year I'm most interested in Eng, House of doors and then Paul Lynch. Have to check out the Trees, love D. Linch.

[@Shellyish]

Thanks for sharing! :)

[@pwcinla]

I think you mean Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. And yes, it's incredible. One of my favorite Booker winners.

[@sandraraedeer4849]

I used the link and I have one winner to read from 2001 The True History of The Kelly Gang. From shortlist Great Circle and longlist Booth. I keep meaning to pick up The The Luminaries and A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James looks interesting.

[@Shellyish]

I've heard Carey's writing is brilliant. He's an author I've always meant to get to.

[@novelideea]

There are things I loved about JL Carr’s A Month in the Country and things that made me mad/sad. I haven’t honestly read much from any of the years listed in Wikipedia- I do have a couple I read and *liked* - Patrick O’Brian’s Master and Commander; Elizabeth Taylor’s Mrs Palfrey at the Clairmont; Philip Pullman’s Amber Spyglass, Susanna Clark’s Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell… I have a few on my TBR : John Banville’s The Sea, Iris Murdoch’s The Sea, The Sea; Roy’s The God of Small Things…

[@Shellyish]

I've meant to read Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell for AGES and still haven't. I've heard amazing things about Master and Commander which I'll have to keep an eye out for that one.

[@mariasmiles68]

I think I am the only person on the planet that did not enjoy the Lucy Barton series. 😢 I LOVED Olive Kittredge and will reread so I can read Olive Again. Authors I want to read are Colm Tóibín, Ian McEwan, Alice Munro, Kazuo Ishiguro and Salman Rushdie. (last 2 are waiting on my shelf) I recently found the second in the Wolf Hall trilogy at a thrift store and it went in my cart because I have heard she is a really good author and I am looking for the other 2 . I don't normally do that, but I think this series will be worth it.

[@Shellyish]

Ha! You are not the only person to not get along with Lucy Barton. Several booktubers gently joke with me because I liked the Barton series and they absolutely did not. :)

[@-ParisTexas-]

Of course I was curious to see if I have read any long- and shortlisted Booker books and if I liked them. I read moe than I thought, but there weren't many favourites. I'm currently reading *Notes on a Scandal* , but I'm not far in. The only books on this list that I read and that I like are *Atonement* , *A Tale for the Time Being* and *The White Tiger* . I see a lot of the same authors come up time and time again. Booker should broaden their horizon. It could definitely be more diverse.

[@jacquelinemcmenamin8204]

My favourite Booker winner is The Van by Roddy Doyle It’s part of the Barrytown triology. The Snapper The Commitments All three have been adapted into film.Excellent books & movies. 🍀👋☘️📚📕📖☕️🇮🇪

[@Shellyish]

I'm going to keep my eye out for all of these titles. :)

[@bookofdust]

I just got access to A Month in the County, so I’m jumping on the train of readers for that book this month. As always I’m going to sing the praises of The God of Small Things, which with my reread earlier this year may end up being my favorite book ever if my upcoming reread of East of Eden doesn’t hold up. One of the most sublime novels of all time.

[@Shellyish]

Thanks for the gentle reminder that I want to read BOTH The God of Small Things and East of Eden. I'd love it if you kept me updated on your thoughts/feelings of East of Eden. I want to know if it holds up. :)

[@bookofdust]

@@Shellyish It’s really terrifying and I hope I don’t back out. I saw the miniseries when I was about 16 and decided to read it and it was like the first adult, sophisticated, classic book I came to and discover on my own. Of course it was so much better then the miniseries, though Jane Seymour as one of the best female villains in literature is hard to beat. I read a majority of Steinbeck’s works, but avoided the Grapes of Wrath as it had the potential to dethrone EoE and I didn’t want that to happen. It’s basically the yard stick I’ve measured all book against since then and I’m not sure I want to muddy the majesty of that book’s memory and place in my mind eye. I even use Caleb Trask as my alias for most places on the web, and again the heartbreak and beauty of that character better live up to my memory of him.

[@edgarmarroquin4793]

Not the train, 😭 😂

[@starlasell5698]

❤️📚❤️

[@fractured_stories]

I’ve only read nine books that were either listed for or won the Booker. Of these, my favs were A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I checked out the Wikipedia link and was shocked to see that one of my most hated books actually won The Booker: A Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes. I hate what he seemed to be philosophically justifying in that novel. Definitely not a book that should be read by anyone struggling with depression. I think it’s socially irresponsible that it won the award.

[@Shellyish]

You and many others mentioned your love for A Tale for the Time Being. :) I really want to pick it up now.

[@SpringboardThought]

If people dnf cloud atlas I don’t get it :| we can’t be condoning that :O Wow some bangers in this list. And also wolf hall.

[@Shellyish]

Always dissing Wolf Hall. You just didn't understand. Mantel is a genius! GENIUS!

[@mediumjohnsilver]

I looked through the Booker list and the only one I read was _Saturday_ by Ian McEwan (2005 Longlist). It was good, but not a favorite.

[@Shellyish]

I've read a couple of McEwan books and he's very middling to me.

[@jillybeanh67]

Id probably say that my favourite would either be handmaids tale (i studied it for A level fo read it multiple times) or my sister teh serial killer. However, i can tell you my least favourite was hotel du lac, becauee its one of only a handful of books ive eve read and HATED. which sounds harsh but really did not like that book.

[@Shellyish]

Jill, thanks for sharing your least favorite. :) I should've included mine in this video. :)

[@pamelatarajcak5634]

Well because Twin Peaks : gender issues :: Trees : racial issues.

[@Shellyish]

YEEEEEEEEESSSS! Spot on.