Three works of fiction and three of non-fiction have been selected by reading groups and a judging panel. Among the three books of fiction is `The Blue Bedspread' by journalist author Raj Kamal Jha. The other two are Daren King's `Boxy and Star' and `Ghostwritten' by David Mitchell. `Ghostwritten' by Mitchell has emerged as the clear favourite with high points from readers groups based in London, Brighton, Glasgow and Leeds. The readers groups were assembled at a series of bookshops in these cities. This is the first time that readers have been involved in selection of a book for an award.

Several readers have written to say that the method of selection will have a lasting influence on the waybooks are selected for awards. It has been suggested also that this method of selection could work for the Booker.

"The involvement of reading groups in the judging process has emerged as one of the glories of this award," Claire Armistead from The Guardian said after the shortlist was announced. "Compare this variety of opinion with the political bickering, the trade-offs and the turn-taking that we hear so much about from other major awards," she said.

`Ghostwritten,' the favourite for the award, has a strongly Asian theme. In the non-fiction section, a tale of genocide in Rwanda by Philip Gourevitch from the New Yorker, titled `We Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families', emerged as the readers' favourite. The other two listed in the non-fiction section are `The Lighthouse Stevensons' by Bella Bathurst and Gary Younge's `No Place Like Home'. The winner will be announced at a party in London on December 2.