Dhaka, Sept. 23 -- The shortlist for this year's Booker Prize has been unveiled following a spirited selection process that panel chair Dame Mary Beard described as "a tussle", the BBC reports.

Previous laureates Marlon James and Douglas Stuart make the final six alongside Pulitzer winner Elizabeth Strout, M John Harrison, Luke Kennard, and debut novelist Rebecca Perry.

Seven longlisted titles were dropped after heated deliberations, which judge Patricia Lockwood jokingly likened to "wrestling like pigs in the mud".

According to the BBC, the panel said the chosen novels embrace risk, heart, and authentic lived experience that cannot be replicated by artificial intelligence.

The shortlist features:

· The End of Everything by M Jo...