Decisions and Dilemmas at Hotel du Lac

In 1984, many assumed that J.G. Ballard's Empire of the Sun had the Booker Prize in the bag. But actually, it was Anita Brookner's Hotel du Lac that clinched the prize in the end. This week, we're exploring the bookies' favourite vs the Booker winner to ask which book should have won: Brookner's short, quiet novel set in a genteel Swiss hotel or Ballard's long and action-packed autobiographical epic set in wartime Shanghai.

In this episode Jo and James:

• Discuss the Booker Prize 1984 shortlist
• Share a brief biography of Anita Brookner
• Summarise the plot of Anita Brookner's Hotel du Lac
• Explore the characters in Brookner's novel
• Share a brief biography of J.G. Ballard
• Summarise the plot of Empire of the Sun
• Who should read these books
• Discuss their thoughts on both novels and which they think should have won the Booker Prize 1984

Reading list:

• Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/empire-of-the-sun
• Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/hotel-du-lac
• Small World by David Lodge: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/small-world
• Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/flauberts-parrot
• In Custody by Anita Desai: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/in-custody
• According to Mark by Penelope Lively: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/according-to-mark

A full transcript of the episode is available at our website: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/features/the-booker-prize-podcast-episode-37-empire-of-the-sun-or-hotel-du-lac

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