The longlist of 13 books has been revealed for the International Booker Prize 2026, which is celebrating 10 years in its current form this year. During that time, the prize has become the world’s most influential award for translated fiction.
The Booker Prize Foundation is also announcing that Bukhman Philanthropies is generously funding the International Booker Prize 2026.
The longlist of 13 books has been chosen by the 2026 judging panel, chaired by award-winning author Natasha Brown. Brown is joined by writer, broadcaster and Oxford University Professor of Mathematics and for the Public Understanding of Science Marcus du Sautoy; International Booker Prize-shortlisted translator Sophie Hughes; writer, Lolwe editor and bookseller Troy Onyango; and award-winning novelist and columnist Nilanjana S. Roy.
The selection, which was chosen from 128 books submitted by publishers, celebrates the best works of long-form fiction or collections of short stories translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland between 1 May 2025 and 30 April 2026.
The International Booker Prize recognises the vital work of translation, with the £50,000 prize money divided equally between the winning author and translator/s. In championing works from around the world that have originated in a wide range of languages, the prize fosters an engaged global community of writers and readers whose experiences and interests transcend national borders.
The shortlist of six books will be announced on Tuesday 31 March 2026. Each shortlisted title will be awarded a prize of £5,000: £2,500 for the author and £2,500 for the translator. The announcement of the winning book will take place on Tuesday 19 May 2026 at a ceremony at Tate Modern in London. The announcement will be live-streamed on the Booker Prizes social media channels.
The full longlist for the International Booker Prize 2026 supported by Bukhman Philanthropies is:
The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated from German by Ruth Martin
‘Through cycles of exile and return, we follow an Iranian family across four decades – and learn what it means to always live in hope. The pages pulse with heartache and humour’
We Are Green and Trembling by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara, translated from Spanish by Robin Myers
‘This fiercely imaginative reworking of colonial history gives voice to a 17th century figure in the depths of the South American jungle. At once playful and devastating, tender and enraging’
The Remembered Soldier by Anjet Daanje, translated from Dutch by David McKay
‘A soldier without his memory; a wife in search of her missing husband. The big question at the heart of this superb novel is: how far humans will go in order to love?’
The Deserters by Mathias Énard, translated from French by Charlotte Mandell
‘A man and woman escape an undefined war; a conference celebrates a mathematician’s life. Both raw and refined, The Deserters weaves together two contrasting stories of hope and survival’
Small Comfort by Ia Genberg, translated from Swedish by Kira Josefsson
‘In five profound and breathtakingly original stories, money makes the world go round – and Genberg has a clear-eyed vision of how. The writing zings in all the right places’
She Who Remains by Rene Karabash, translated from Bulgarian by Izidora Angel
‘In a mountain village governed by archaic laws, a teenage girl swears a vow of chastity to escape an arranged marriage. Told with understated poetry, this is an unforgettable modern fairytale’
The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, translated from German by Ross Benjamin
‘A juggling act of wit and gravity, The Director performs a literary panning shot over the career of a real-life German filmmaker and asks: where is the line between survival and collaboration?’
On Earth As It Is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia, translated from Portuguese by Padma Viswanathan
‘Set in a remote penal colony, this vivid and haunting novel unfolds in a landscape where punishment has replaced justice. A stark, unsettling exploration of power and corruption’
The Duke by Matteo Melchiorre, translated from Italian by Antonella Lettieri
‘A feud between two men set in a claustrophobic village in the Dolomites slowly escalates. Wonderfully evocative and packed full of plot twists, this is storytelling at its best’
The Witch by Marie NDiaye, translated from French by Jordan Stump
‘A long-suffering housewife inducts her daughters into a secret practice passed down by the women in her family: witchcraft. The language in this novel is exquisite; The Witch is pure magic’
Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur, translated from Persian by Faridoun Farrokh
‘Against the backdrop of revolution, we follow the lives of five women as they shed their old lives like snakeskin. Parsipur’s layered tales beckon us into a world touched with fable and myth’
The Wax Child by Olga Ravn, translated from Danish by Martin Aitken
‘Set during the witch trials of 17th century Denmark, this haunting, gripping and singular novel – viewed largely from the perspective of a wax doll – cast a spell on us’
Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated from Mandarin Chinese by Lin King
‘In 1930s Taiwan, a Japanese author develops complex feelings towards her local interpreter. With metafictional twists, this is both a delicious romance and an incisive postcolonial novel’
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