Why was Christos Tsiolkas snubbed for the Miles Franklin prize?

Barracuda fulfils the criteria of presenting Australian life, so its omission from the longlist is startling

For those with a keen interest in literature, the year unfolds in a blur of longlists and shortlists, and we learn to read them like seasoned gamblers checking a racing form guide.

As Australias oldest and most prestigious national literary prize, the Miles Franklin is often the most intently debated, unique in its criterion of selecting the novel which is of the highest literary merit and which must present Australian life in any of its phases. The 2014 longlist was announced this morning.