British author Barry Unsworth has died in Italy aged 81
Writer of historical fiction, who won Britain’s highest literary honour in 1992 for Sacred Hunger, has died.
By Alison Flood
British novelist Barry Unsworth, who won the Booker prize for his story about the 18th-century slave trade, Sacred Hunger, has died in Italy aged 81.
The Durham-born author had lived in Umbria for many years. His publisher Hutchinson confirmed the news of his death this morning.
“Barry was a wonderful writer and this is a great loss,” said publishing director Jocasta Hamilton. “Barry’s work was characterised by a willingness to tackle big subjects with great humanity. His writing brought enormous pleasure as well as being thought-provoking and illuminating. We are incredibly proud to have had the opportunity to publish his last novel, The Quality of Mercy, which has been shortlisted for the Walter Scott prize. Many of us met him in 2010 and were as charmed in person as we had been thrilled by his novels.”
From Morality Play, a 14th-century murder mystery, to Pascali’s Island, set during the last years of the Ottoman Empire, many of Unsworth’s 17 acclaimed novels explored different aspects of history.
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