[NB: Edited with further comments (and pretty pictures) below]
Well, it's here:
- Darkmans by Nicola Barker
- The Gathering by Anne Enright
- The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid
- Master Pip by Lloyd Jones
- On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
- Animal's People by Indra Sinha
I'm at work at the moment (shhhhh - don't tell them I'm posting!), so more reasoned comment later. But I''ve read half of them and can say only this: Go, Darkmans, Go!!!
Later:
What more can I say? Overall, I'm incredibly pleased and heartened by the listing this year, which has been both varied and subtle, and which has merrily challenged the 'establishment'. Saying that, I don't think there are too many surprises - McEwan, Barker and Lloyd Jones have all caused major buzz in the last few days (from what I've read of them thus far, deservedly) and both dovegreyreader and John Self have enjoyed The Gathering and Animal's People. I know enough to trust them. My only real qualm is The Reluctant Fundamentalist, which I didn't really enjoy or appreciate. Unfortunately I suspect it is one of those novels (ala On Beauty) that you either admire or not, depending on sensibility, taste and world view. I shall post more thoroughly over the weekend, but I felt very much that it achieved its effect by slight of hand rather than by force of theme or prose. (I'm 
not going to say I'll cry if it wins. We all know what happened the last time I did that.) I know there has been some surprise in the blogging community that The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies hasn't made it to the final 6 and I admit to a certain disappointment myself - I'm about half way through it as of today and enjoying it very much. And I'm sure that there are readers out there rolling their eyes at McEwan's inclusion and marking it down as a market pleasing gesture. Personally I feel far more positive about it: I thought On Chesil Beach was flawed but fascinating all the same.
At this point I suppose I would be happy to see any but Hamid win, but my heart is still, and will always be, with Nicola Barker's Darkmans. Honestly, how many times can I say it? Forget the fact that it's set in an unusual font (get over it people!) - Barker has written an astonishing, gargantuan beast of a novel, combining the social acuity of Jane Austen, the wordplay of Ali Smith and the creepiness of Poe. Contemporary fiction just doesn't get any better.
~~Victoria~~