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In the world of the Booker Prizes this week: deeply emotional novels that will break your heart; the best Booker Prize anti-heroes for fans of Ripley; and our favourite post-apocalyptic reads
10 of the best anti-heroes in Booker-nominated novels, for fans of Ripley
What exactly is an anti-hero? While the term, which dates back to the early 18th century, has always been quite loosely defined, it is often used to describe protagonists who defy conventional heroic traits, such as courage, integrity or compassion. Instead, anti-heroes are often deeply flawed characters, with questionable values, a skewed moral compass and an unreliable point of view. Although they’re not without their attractions.
Case in point: Tom Ripley, the charming con artist at the heart of Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 crime novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. Now adapted into a hit neo-noir Netflix miniseries, Ripley stars Andrew Scott as the man himself, and follows his web of deceit in a relentless pursuit of wealth and status.
So if the dark and twisted mind of Ripley has left you yearning for more, you’ll find plenty more anti-heroes in the Booker Library, where the lines between good and evil blur.
10 of the most heartbreaking books from the Booker Library
Many Booker-nominated novels don’t shy away from emotionally shattering experiences, with subjects ranging from brutal war to devastating personal loss. Of course, many of these tragic tales also incorporate a good dose of humour, because great writers know that lightness can still be found in the bleakest of situations.
We’ve combed through the Booker Prizes archives to offer this list of novels which are especially emotional. They will break your heart – and mend it again.
Six Booker Prize-nominated post-apocalyptic books, for fans of Fallout
Post-apocalypse writing has been around for a couple of centuries, with Mary Shelley lauded for writing one of the first examples, The Last Man, in 1826. Yet it wasn’t until the threat of nuclear war entered the public consciousness in the 1950s that the golden age of doomsday fiction was truly born. Since then, the genre has grown bigger, bleaker and more terrifying, expanding into films, video games and even TV adaptations of video games, such as Amazon Prime’s latest blockbuster, Fallout.
If you’re a fan of the genre, or if Fallout has given you a taste for something dark and disturbing, we’ve compiled a list of post-apocalyptic Booker Prize-nominated novels that will capture the darkest of imaginations and leave you asking – at the end of it all – what really matters?
Such a fascinating piece 💎💕📚💕💎 Thank you 🙏
So many wonderful writers in the world. Thank you for introducing me to them.