"Its concept never quite convinces." "A novel that somehow succeeds despite itself." "There is no real plot to speak of". Looking back at The National's reviews of novels in the running for the Man Booker Prize, to be announced this evening in the UK, it's tricky to find unqualified praise. And it's not that we are unnecessarily or uniquely harsh critics – The Guardian's appraisal of Emily Fridlund's contender, History Of Wolves, was simply "strikingly impotent'. The New York Times, which you would expect to flagwave for virtuoso American writer George Saunders, moaned that Lincoln in the Bardo – by some distance the Man Booker favourite – would have "benefited immensely from some judicious pruning".
All of which might suggest that this is a fallow year for the self-styled "leading prize for quality fiction in English". Far from it. The vast majority of the books on the shortlist share a desire to be audacious with form. So Saunders's novel based on the death of Abraham Lincoln's son is set in the afterlife and pieced together from fragments of "ghostly babble", extracts from newspapers and memoir. Paul Auster's 900-page epic, 4 3 2 1, charts the same character heading down four differing life paths. Mohsin Hamid's exploration of migration, Exit West, might be very much of its time, but its concept is far more slippery: his refugees pass from East to West through magical doors. Both Fiona Mozley and Emily Fridlund's books share child protagonists whose dark stories in the margins of western society are deliberately difficult to grasp.
A line in Ali Smith's daring Autumn seems to sum up the atmosphere of this shortlist: "Here's an old story so new that it's still in the middle of happening, writing itself right now with no knowledge of where or how it'll end."
What such experimentation naturally does, of course, is divide opinion and unsettle readers and critics. Not everything these authors attempt comes off – though we should applaud their desire to try. Certainly it feels as if, in overlooking longlisted – and hugely readable – novels by Zadie Smith, Colson Whitehead, Arundhati Roy or Sebastian Barry, the judges, comprising travel writer/novelist Colin Thubron, novelist-cum-short-story writer Sarah Hall, artist/experimental novelist Tom Phillips and writer/Nabokov academic Lila Azam Zanganeh, have in some way reflected the personal ambitions they have for the loftier possibilities of the literary novel in their choices.
It's not a watertight argument, given that Mike McCormack's Solar Bones, a fine piece of writing presented in a single sentence, didn't make the final cut. But it was telling that chair of judges Baroness Lola Young described all six shortlisted novels as "unique and intrepid books that collectively push against the borders of convention … the ways in which they challenge our thinking is a testament to the power of literature". Whether that means the most obviously unconventional – Saunders's Lincoln in the Bardo – wins, is almost impossible to predict. For all our concerns about its concept being not convincing, we still happened upon "an incredible display of empathetic and wise writing". It's the flawed genius of this year's list. Over to you, Baroness.
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Read more:
Book review: George Saunders’s Lincoln in the Bardo binds history and afterlife in tweet-like exchanges
Paul Auster tops shortlist for Man Booker prize
Book review: Paul Auster’s 4 3 2 1 – four versions of one life
In conversation with Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid
Man Booker Prize 2017: A look at the longlisted nominees
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FORSPOKEN
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Starfield
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SQUADS
South Africa:
Faf du Plessis (capt), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wkt), AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Wayne Parnell, Dane Paterson, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada
Coach: Ottis Gibson
Bangladesh:
Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Imrul Kayes, Liton Das (wkt), Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim (wkt), Mustafizur Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Tamim Iqbal, Taskin Ahmed.
Coach: Chandika Hathurusingha
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Wonka
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Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
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Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Meydan race card
6.30pm: Maiden Dh 165,000 1,600m
7.05pm: Handicap Dh 185,000 2,000m
7.40pm: Maiden Dh 165,000 1,600m
8.15pm: Handicap Dh 190,000 1,400m
8.50pm: Handicap Dh 175,000 1,600m
9.25pm: Handicap Dh 175,000 1,200m
10pm: Handicap Dh 165,000 1,600m
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
