Mohammed Hanif, Rushdie in Booker longlist

Debut writer Mohammed Hanif and former winner Salman Rushdie were among 13 writers selected for the longlist of this year's Man Booker Prize for fiction.

The judges chose writers from Australia, India, Ireland, Pakistan and the UK from 112 entries.

Mohammed Hanif's A Case of Exploding Mangoes has already been hailed by the Indian and Pakistani press as one of the most outstanding debuts this year.

"I am delighted that it has been recognised by the Booker prize judges as well," said Chiki Sarkar, editor-in-chief of Random House India.

The list covers five first novels and two novels by former winners. Earlier this month, Rushdie's novel Midnight's Children, which won the 1981 prize, was named the best Booker Prize of all time, in a public vote to mark the 40th anniversary of the competition.

This year's shortlist will be revealed on September 9 and the winner will be announced at an awards ceremony at London's Guildhall on October 14.

The full longlist list for 2008 is: Aravind Adiga, White Tiger; Gaynor Arnold, Girl in a Blue Dress; Sebastian Barry, The Secret Scripture; John Berger, From A to X; Michelle de Kretser, The Lost Dog; Amitav Ghosh, Sea of Poppies; Linda Grant, The Clothes on Their Backs; Mohammed Hanif, A Case of Exploding Mangoes; Philip Hensher, The Northern Clemency; Joseph O'Neill; Salman Rushdie, The Enchantress of Florence; Tom Rob Smith, Child 44; Steve Tolz, A Fraction of the Whole.