The shortlist has been announced for the Man Asian Literary Prize: of the twenty-three names on the long list five have been selected, including Jiang Rong (Wolf Totem) from the home team. Xu Xi (Habit of a Foreign Sky) also counts, depending on your definition of, erm, the home team. Wolf Totem, translated by Howard Goldblatt, will be published by Penguin in March, 2008. The shortlist is as follows:

• Jose Dalisay Jr., Soledad’s Sister
• Reeti Gadekar, Families at Home
• Jiang Rong, Wolf Totem
• Nu Nu Yi Inwa, Smile As They Bow
• Xu Xi, Habit of a Foreign Sky

The winner will be announced in November.