The Independent writes, "In form and mood, our pair of Norwegian candidates stand at opposite ends of the spectrum: this long-list runs from sprawling family sagas (The Half Brother) to exquisite miniatures (In The Wake)."
Next month the long-list of 16 will be compressed into a short-list of 6. On 19 April, the winner of this year's Independent Foreign Fiction Prize will be announced.
The prize, which is administered by Arts Council England, is "awarded for translated fiction by living authors first published in Britain in the year preceding the award." The sum of £10,000 is shared equally between the author and translator.