Conan Doyle Story May Win Booker Prize

A novel based on the true story of Arthur Conan Doyle's crusade to overturn a miscarriage of justice last night appeared as the favorite to win this year's Man Booker Prize.

Even though Julian Barnes's Arthur and George is on the shortlist, announced yesterday, for the premier award in British fiction, there was widespread surprise that it was not joined by two other hotly-tipped novels - Salman Rushdie's "Shalimar The Clown," and Ian McEwan's "Saturday."

Catherine Lockerbie, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said, "I'm flabbergasted that the Rushdie wasn't on the list. Shalimar the Clown has a richness, depth and an ambition, and a huge political and emotional punch."

Earlier this year, McEwan's Saturday, which was almost collectively praised by reviewers, had emerged as the front- runner for this year's prize. Like Rushdie's novel, McEwan's story had a contemporary setting, dealing with the issue of the threat of violence and terrorism.

Of the six novels that actually made the shortlist, only two, both by women, are set in a indistinctly recognizable present: Zadie Smith's "On Beauty" and "The Accidental," by Ali Smith. The winner of the Man Booker Prize will be announced and broadcasted in London on October 10.