2026 Booker Prize Longlist Announced

This year’s Booker Prize longlist, revealed on Tuesday, features 13 books spanning various genres, including thriller, dystopian sci-fi, and romance. Notably, two former winners have been recognized again: Douglas Stuart, who won with Shuggie Bain in 2020, and Marlon James, who clinched the prize in 2015 for A Brief History of Seven Killings. Elizabeth Strout appears on the list as a nominee for the third time with her new work, The Things We Never Say. Additionally, the longlist includes three debut authors.

Mary Beard, chair of the Booker Prize 2026 judges, stated, “Every writer on our longlist brilliantly musters the power of words on the page to take the reader to new places, to see old places from new angles, to change minds.” The Booker Prize is awarded annually to an author for a book published in English in the U.K. and/or Ireland between October 1 and September 30.

The 2025 prize went to David Szalay for Flesh. Six shortlisted authors will each receive £2,500, equivalent to about $3,300. The winner, set to be announced at a London ceremony on November 9, will earn £50,000, slightly more than $66,000.

Here is the complete 2026 Booker Prize longlist:

• The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis
• Switzy by Emma Cline
• Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman
• The End of Everything by M. John Harrison
• The Disappearers by Marlon James
• Black Bag by Luke Kennard
• The Renovation by Kenan Orhan
• May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry
• The Palm House by Gwendoline Riley
• The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
• John of John by Douglas Stuart
• All Them Dogs by Djamel White
• The Vivisectors by Missouri Williams