Duchess of Cornwall to present Booker Prize

The Duchess of Cornwall backs a number of reading campaigns

The Duchess of Cornwall is to present this year's prestigious Man Booker Prize.

Six writers have been shortlisted for the prize, with Jim Crace, Colm Toibin and Eleanor Catton among the nominees.

Camilla supports a number of organisations which promote literacy, including the National Literacy Trust.

She will present the prize, which comes with a cheque for £50,000, during a ceremony at the Guildhall in the City of London on 15 October.

Crace's Harvest is the bookmakers' favourite to win. He was previously shortlisted for the Booker in 1997 for Quarantine.

The other shortisted authors are NoViolet Bulawayo, Jhumpa Lahiri and Ruth Ozeki.

Last year the award was won by Hilary Mantel for the second time, for her Wolf Hall sequel Bring Up the Bodies.

Launching the National Literacy Trust's campaign to identify literary heroes on Wednesday, the Duchess said: "I firmly believe in the importance of igniting a passion for reading in the next generation.

"In a world where the written word competes with so many other calls on our attention, we need more literacy heroes to keep inspiring young people to find the pleasure and power of reading for themselves."