Is Bob Dylan’s Nobel prize for literature a joke or an inspired choice?

To say that singer Bob Dylan’s Nobel prize for literature came as a shock to the literary establishment is something of an understatement.

With the Syrian poet Adonis and the Kenyan novelist and critic Ngugi Wa Thiong’o widely seen as favourites, Dylan’s triumph sparked a mixture of horror, head scratching and elation.

“Dylan’s name has often been mentioned over the past few years but we always thought it was a joke,” said the French novelist Pierre Assouline, who could not hide his fury at the Nobel committee.

“Their decision is contemptuous of writers,” he said. “I like Dylan but where is the [literary] work? I think the Swedish Academy have made themselves look ridiculous.”

With three of the giants of American letters - Philip Roth, Joyce Carol Oates and Don De Lillo - still waiting for the Nobel nod, and past greats such as Jorge Luis Borges ignored in their lifetimes, other writers were also quick to put the boot in.