Australia's Flanagan takes Man Booker prize with war story

Australian author Richard Flanagan poses for pictures after winning the 2014 Man Booker Prize for his book "The Narrow Road To The Deep North" in Central London. - AFP PHOTO/BEN STANSALL

Richard Flanagan says The Narrow Road To The Deep North, set during WWII and the building of the Thailand-Burma railway, was a book "I had to write". 

Australian novelist Richard Flanagan said that before winning the prestigious Man Booker prize for literature on Oct 14, he had considered becoming a miner because he found it so difficult to make a living at his craft.