Ali snubbed again

She was crowned one of Britain's best novelists even before her first book was published, and hailed the leader of a new generation of female literary talent.

The hype surrounding first-time author Monica Ali was spectacular - but she has been ignored by the judging panels for Britain's biggest book awards.

Now the Standard can reveal that Ali's Brick Lane has been overlooked yet again, this time by the Orange Prize for Fiction, which announces its shortlist tomorrow.

A source close to the world's top prize for novels by women confirmed: "Monica Ali does not feature on the shortlist this year."

It will come as a blow to literary magazine Granta, which sparked the interest in Ali by naming her one of its Best Of Young British Novelists in 2003. The list is compiled once a decade.

Brick Lane, which centres on the Bangladeshi community in east London, was not shortlisted for the Whitbread Prize and, despite being favourite, failed to win the Booker Prize. It also missed out on the Guardian First Book Award.

A senior editor at a major publisher said: "In terms of readers she has absolutely made it. She has sold hundreds of thousands of copies of Brick Lane - and even Richard and Judy like it.

"But for some inexplicable reason it has not been garlanded by the important prizes. It is surprising she has been left out by prize after prize."

The shortlisted contenders for the £30,000 Orange Prize are drawn from a 20-strong list that featured Ali and six other first-time women novelists.

The shortlist is expected to include Margaret Atwood's Oryx And Crake, and Zoe Heller's Notes On A Scandal.