Beatty becomes first US writer to win Man Booker Prize

London

PAUL Beatty has became the first US author to win the Man Booker Prize for his novel The Sellout, which the novelist said should not be read as a "mono-directional" take on race.

The jury behind the world's most prestigious English-language literary award said the novel was a "shocking and unexpectedly funny" portrayal of Beatty's native Los Angeles, using satire to explore racial equality in a fictional neighbourhood.