Dutch author Astrid Roemer left off International Booker shortlist

Dutch-Surinamese author Astrid Roemer did not make the International Booker Prize shortlist. Her work Over de gekte van een vrouw, translated in English to On a Woman’s Madness, had been placed on the long list for the prize given to the best fictional books that have been translated into English.

Six titles are still in the running to win the award. Books by Solvej Balle, Vincent Delecroix, Hiromi Kawakami, Vincenzo Latronico, Banu Mushtaq, and Anne Serra made the shortlist. The winner will be announced on May 20.

There is also a Booker Prize award. This is given to a book that was originally released in English and in the United Kingdom. Dutch author Yael van der Wouden was on the shortlist for this award last year. She was the first Dutch author to make this list.

Over de gekte van een vrouw was Roemer’s debut novel. It was released in 1982. Her work was translated into English by Lucy Scott. The book is about a woman fleeing her hometown in Suriname for the capital city, Paramaribo. “Unsettled and unsupported, her life in this new place is illuminated by romance and new freedoms, but also forever haunted by her past and society’s expectations,” the Booker Prize described the novel.

The winner of the Booker Prize is awarded 50,000 pounds, equivalent to around 60,300 euros. The cash is divided between the author and the translator. Authors that make the shortlist are given 2,500 pounds with the translator getting the same fee.