Thayil beats Hilary Mantel on bestseller lists in home state

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Jeet Thayil is way ahead of Hilary Mantel at least in Thiruvananthapuram. Though British novelist Hilary Mantel created history by becoming the first woman to become a two-time winner of the Man Booker Prize, most of the bibliophiles in the city still prefer Kerala-born writer Jeet Thayil's first novel 'Narcopolis'. Thayil's Booker-shortlisted fiction has become an instant hit among the readers in the city.
"To be frank, I really wanted Thayil to win. Among the Malayali writers in English, Jeet Thayil has created a new era of fiction writing. The author of 'Narcopolis' has never bothered what the mummy-pappa, uncle-aunty of the society will think about him after reading the book. About Mantel's 'Bring Up The Bodies' I do not have anything to say," said Ravi Muttukonad, a retired government employee and a book buff. N E Chithrasenan, manager of Modern Book Centre says the sales of Thayil's book had shot up soon after he was shortlisted for the coveted award, but very few went for Mantel's.
"More than 100 copies of 'Narcopolis' were sold out in our shop itself soon after the final list of Booker Prize nominees were announced. Till date, we have only sold two copies of 'Bring up the Bodies'. The sale might increase in the coming days," said Chithrasenan.
The DC Books store in the city too tells a similar story. "The high sales rate of 'Narcopolis' shows that Malayalis had considered it as a serious contender to win the prize. Getting shortlisted to the Booker showed a significant rise in the sales of this book. We hope that readers will now buy the Booker Prize winning book too," said Praveen, a staff of DC Books.
"I had read her novel 'Wolf Hall' that fetched her the Booker in 2009. Now, I have to buy a copy of 'Bring Up The Bodies' and read it," said Meenakshi, a college student.