Tomb of Sand, Written by Geetanjali Shree Makes It To International Booker Prize Shortlist

The English translation has been hailed as "loud and irresistible" by the judges.

“It is recognition of a very special kind. When a work appeals to unknown people sitting in faraway places, then it must have the ability to transcend its specific cultural context and touch the universal and the human,” Shree said in a statement. The prize money is a whoping GBP 50,000 prize, which will be split equally between the author and translator.

The six shortlisted novels are each translated from a different language and originate from a different country, with three continents represented on the list, said the announcement. The 2022 shortlist includes previous winners Olga Tokarczuk and Jennifer Croft alongside authors translated into English for the first time. The shortlist spans six languages: Korean, Norwegian, Japanese, Spanish, Hindi and Polish.

The other five titles include, Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung, translated by Anton Hur from Korean; A New Name: Septology VI-VII by Jon Fosse, translated by Damion Searls from Norwegian; Heaven by Mieko Kawakami, translated by Samuel Bett and David Boyd from Japanese; Elena Knows by Claudia Piñeiro, translated by Frances Riddle from Spanish; and The Books of Jacob by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Jennifer Croft from Polish.

About The Author

An author of three novels and several short story collections Shree was born in Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh. Her works have been translated into several international languages. 

The 64-year-old novelist currently resides in  New Delhi. Tomb of Sand was initially published in Hindi in 2018 under the title "Ret Samadhi". The English Pen Award was given to this book as well.

About the Translator

Daisy Rockwell, her translator, is a Vermont-based painter, writer and translator who has translated a number of classic Hindi and Urdu writings.