Indian author Samanth Subramanian's book on Lankan civil war longlisted for Samuel Johnson Prize

An account of Sri Lanka’s civil war by Indian author Samanth Subramanian has been longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize, one of United Kingdom’s most prestigious award for non-fiction, foreign media reported. Subramanian’s book This Divided Island is among the 12 books longlisted for the £20,000 worth prize whose shortlist will be announced in October during the London Literature Festival and the winner in November, publishers Penguin Random House said in a statement on Tuesday according to the PTI. “The book tracks the rise of militant Buddhism, driven by monk politicians who hold extraordinary, extreme opinions,” publishers said. The prize is open to authors of all non-fiction books in current affairs, history, politics, science, sport, travel, biography autobiography and the arts. Subramaniun, won the 2010 Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize for his first book of narrative non-fiction Following Fish: Travels around the Indian Coast, which was also shortlisted for the 2013 Andre Simon Prize.This year’s judging panel is chaired by the Pulitzer prize-winning historian Anne Applebaum.