Indian political book in the prestigious Orwell Prize shortlist

The Orwell Prizes are the UK’s most prestigious prizes for political writing. They are an annual award by The Orwell Foundation which seeks to highlight and award works that succeed ‘to make political writing into an art’. They have two categories for books, The Orwell Prize for Political Writing and The Orwell Prize for Political Fiction. Here are the books shortlisted for the 2019 prize for Political Writing. These books are all non-fiction.

In this true story the author tells of his life as a part of the Border Control. He learns to track other humans under terrible conditions and finally leaves the Patrol, unable to bear the lack of humanity in it. However when a Mexican friend goes to his dying mother in Mexico and does not come back, he investigates and discovers the true extent of horror the border holds. Tulip Siddiq, Chair of judges said, "Mesmerising. As cliched as it sounds – I really couldn’t put this book down. It was a real page-turner and one of those books that stays with you for days to come"
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We live in a world ruled by numbers and this books tells of the hidden biases of economic orthodoxy and proposes some interesting alternatives to the way things are. Tulip Siddiq described it as, "A thought-provoking and surprisingly entertaining book exploring how we measure our economy."
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This books expands on The Troubles Ireland saw from the 1970's onwards starting with the famous case of Jean McConville. Ted Hodgkinson, one of the competition judges describes it as, "This haunting and timely portrait of The Troubles opens with the disappearance of a mother of ten and radiates outwards to encompass the entire conflict, giving voice to characters and stories often shrouded in silence, and leaving an indelible and nuanced impression of the human cost of this unstable chapter of history."
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Naxalites have been engaged in a decades-long battle with the Indian state and the author of this book, Alpa Shah, spent years with them understanding thier perspective. This book shows what she learnt in her years with the naxalites. Helen Pankhurst, one of the judges said, "In Nightmarch Alpa Shah explains the logic behind the Naxalite movement in India through her own encounters with them. She does so beautifully and thoughtfully, in sympathy yet critically, academically yet in the most simple and absorbing of ways."
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The title of the book says it all. Oliver Bullough describes how seemingly respectable, white-collar workers are the real crooks and why the economy is where it is today. Helen Pankhurst said, "Moneyland is a fascinating forensic analysis of the lack of transparency in the global money world, how we got to this point, the direction of travel and how it affects us all. Very well researched and written – an important book."
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This is an autobiography by a second-generation German after the end of the Second World War. Her book details her life facing ambivalence due to her country's recent history and her struggle to form a national identity. Ted Hodgkinson described it as, "An artful examination of the cultural inheritance passed down between generations of a German family, Heimat illuminates the universal need for belonging, and the challenge of attempting to forge this fragile sense of rootedness from a fragmentary and chequered past."
​Photo: orwellfoundation.com