Last week we crowned the best Booker shortlist ever and this week, we're going even deeper into that list. In 2005, the odds were on Julian Barnes to win the Booker Prize with Arthur & George but the judges chose The Sea by John Banville. Arthur & George traces the intersecting lives of an obscure solicitor and the world-famous creator of Sherlock Holmes, while The Sea follows a man attempting to escape a recent loss while confronting a past trauma. So, we're taking a closer look at both books and asking: who was right – the Booker judges or the bookies?

In this episode Jo and James:

• Give plot summaries of Arthur & George and The Sea
• Share a short biography of Julian Barnes and John Banville
• Discuss the merits of each novel
• Consider whether the bookies' favourite should have won the Booker Prize in 2005

Reading list:

• The Sea by John Banville
• Arthur & George by Julian Barnes
• On Beauty by Zadie Smith
• The Accidental by Ali Smith
• A Long Long Way by Sebastian Barry
• Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
• Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie
• In the Fold by Rachel Cusk
• A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka
• Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
• Saturday by Ian McEwan

Further resources:

• How do you place a winning bet on the Booker Prize? via The Atlantic

A full transcript of the episode is available at our website.

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