'Lost' Man Booker Prize From 1970 to Be Awarded

In 1970, the Man Booker Prize went to a book published in 1969, but the rules changed in 1971 and the coveted prize was awarded to a book published that year—meaning no 1970 novel scored a Booker. Organizers plan to right the perceived wrong by awarding the Lost Man Booker Prize to one of a number of "remarkable" titles from the forgotten year, the BBC reports.

Iris Murdoch, Melvyn Bragg, and Joe Orton are among the longlisted authors. A shortlist will be selected in March by three judges who, oddly enough, were all too young to read in 1970; the public can then vote for the winner, to be announced in May, online. “Our longlist demonstrates that 1970 was a remarkable year for fiction written in English,” says the prize’s literary director. “Recognition for these novels and the eventual winner is long overdue.” For the complete longlist, click here.