* Australian author Richard Flanagan took
away the literary world's most coveted prize for his book 'The Narrow Road to the Deep North' on 15 October 2014.
* Flanagan's book is the story of his
father as a prisoner during war in a Japanese prison and was called a literary
masterpiece by the jury.
* Flanagan - the Tasmanian-born author is
the third Australian to win the coveted prize which, for the first time in its
46-year history, is now expanded to include entries from writers of all
nationalities, writing originally in English and published in the UK.
* 'The Narrow Road to the Deep North' is
the sixth novel from Flanagan which centres upon the experiences of surgeon
Dorrigo Evans in a Japanese POW camp on the now infamous Thailand-Burma
railway.
* In addition to his £50,000 prize and
trophy, Flanagan also receives a designer bound edition of his book, and a
further £2,500 for being shortlisted.
* On winning the Man Booker prize, an
author can expect international recognition, not to mention a dramatic increase
in book sales.
* Kolkata boy Neel Mukherjee was among the
six short listed authors for his book 'The Lives of Others'. The other
contestants for the award were US authors Joshua Ferris, Karen Joy Fowler, and
British authors Howard Jacobson and Ali Smith.
* This is also the first time in the
British prestigious literary award's 46-year history that it was opened to
writers of any nationality, writing in English and having their work published
in Britain. It had hitherto been confined to writers from Commonwealth
countries, Ireland, and Zimbabwe.
