Books by Rachel Kushner and Percival Everett Make Booker Prize Shortlist

Two American authors are among the six finalists for this year's prestigious Booker Prize for fiction.

Rachel Kushner's The Flamethrowers and Percival Everett's The Trees are both on the shortlist for the £50,000 prize, which is awarded to the best novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland.

The other four shortlisted authors are British writers Alan Garner for Treacle Walker, Shehan Karunatilaka for The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, and two Irish writers, Claire Keegan for Small Things Like These and Edna O'Brien for Girl.

Kushner's novel is a sprawling, ambitious work that follows the lives of several characters in New York City in the 1970s.

It's a story about art, politics, love, and loss, and it's been praised for its vivid characters and its insightful exploration of the American experience.

Everett's novel is a more experimental work that tells the story of a group of African Americans who are lynched in Mississippi in the 1950s.

It's a powerful and disturbing novel that challenges readers to confront the legacy of racism in America.

Both Kushner and Everett are highly acclaimed authors who have been writing for decades.

Kushner's previous novels include The Mars Room and Telex from Cuba, while Everett's previous novels include Erasure and The Water Cure.

The Booker Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and it's a major honor for any author to be shortlisted.

The winner of the prize will be announced on October 17.

Here are some additional details about the six shortlisted books:

• The Flamethrowers by Rachel Kushner is a story about art, politics, love, and loss in 1970s New York City.
• The Trees by Percival Everett is a powerful and disturbing novel that challenges readers to confront the legacy of racism in America.
• Treacle Walker by Alan Garner is a magical and mysterious novel that follows the journey of a young boy who is searching for his missing father.
• The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka is a darkly humorous novel that tells the story of a war photographer who is killed and must navigate the afterlife.
• Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan is a moving and understated novel that tells the story of a coal merchant who befriends a young pregnant woman.
• Girl by Edna O'Brien is a powerful and unflinching novel that tells the story of a young woman's coming of age in rural Ireland.

The Booker Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and it's a major honor for any author to be shortlisted.

The winner of the prize will be announced on October 17.