Harris and Mendelson fail to make Man Booker shortlist

“To have been longlisted was so thrilling and for the book to have gained so much exposure, I can’t really complain.

“Because it was so hard to place the book with a publisher (there were countless rejections), it also gave me a huge sense of validation.”

Charlotte Mendelson’s book Almost English — her fourth novel — also focuses on the pressures and powerful ties which come with family.

In it, she chronicles the story of 16-year-old Marina’s struggles to fit into a traditional English public school environment as an awkward half-Hungarian misfit.

A spokesman for Pan Macmillan, Ms Mendelson’s publisher, said it was “fantastic that she was on the longlist, because it’s so prestigious. It would have been great to have been on the shortlist, but that’s how it is.”

Harvest, by Jim Crace, is the bookmakers’ favourite to take home the prestigious award which carries prize money of £50,000.

The winner will be announced on October 15.