Vancouver-born author Madeleine Thien shortlisted for Man Booker Prize

The 155 novels chosen for the 2016 Man Booker Prize were whittled down to 13 titles, and the six books that made the shortlist were announced on September 13.

The shortlist includes Vancouver-born author Madeleine Thien for her third novel Do Not Say We Have Nothing. Although Thien is now based in Montreal, she graduated from UBC's Creative Writing MFA program. Her novel chronicles the lives of three musicians and their families through the upheaval of 20^th century China, including the Cultural Revolution and the Tiananmen Square massacre.

In the story, SFU mathematician named Marie Jiang recalls a guest named Ai-Ming, who fled China and told Marie the story of her family in Revolutionary China.

Her first book, a collection of Vancouver-based short stories called Simple Recipes, won the City of Vancouver Book Award, the VanCity Book Prize, and the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize.

Canadian-born, British-raised David Szalay made the list for All That Man Is.

The list includes two American writers Ottessa Moshfegh for Eileen, and Paul Beatty, for The Sellout; Scottish author Graeme Macrae Burnet for His Bloody Project; and South African–born, British novelist Deborah Levy's Hot Milk.

Levy previously made the list in 2012 for Swimming Home.

The winner will be announced in London on October 25.