The Booker Prize longlist for 2026 was announced on Tuesday, featuring 13 novels spanning genres from thrillers and love stories to dystopian science fiction, according to NPR. Often referred to as the Booker Dozen, the selection includes authors across seven nationalities and three continents, with nearly half hailing from the United Kingdom, as reported by The Guardian.
Booker Prize 2026 Longlist Announced With 13 Novels
The annual prize is awarded to a book written in English and published in the U.K. and/or Ireland between October 1 and September 30. A total of 163 books were submitted for consideration this year. The 2025 prize was won by David Szalay for his novel Flesh.
Judges Praise “Dynamite” Selection and Diverse Settings
Classicist and broadcaster Mary Beard is chairing the 2026 judging panel, which also includes Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker, writer Raymond Antrobus, Booker prize-shortlisted novelist, poet and essayist Patricia Lockwood, and Guardian journalist Rebecca Liu. Describing the selected works as “dynamite,” Beard stated in a release provided by BBC that the longlist offers something for everyone.
The 13 chosen books feature varied global settings and themes. According to source reports, the settings include:
- A Mexico City hospital in The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis
- An assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland in The Booker Prizes by Emma Cline
- 1980s Kingston, Jamaica, in Marlon James’s BBC
- A remote Scottish island in Douglas Stuart’s John of John
- Massachusetts ahead of the 2024 U.S. election in Elizabeth Strout’s The Things We Never Say
Previous Winners Return Alongside Debut Authors
The 2026 longlist features both celebrated literary figures and fresh voices, with ten writers appearing on a Booker longlist for the first time. Among them are three debut novelists: Kenan Orhan, Rebecca Perry, and Djamel White.
Two previous winners have made the prestigious list again: Douglas Stuart, who won in 2020 for Shuggie Bain, and Marlon James, who claimed the 2015 prize for A Brief History of Seven Killings. Additionally, Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Strout returns as a third-time nominee for The Things We Never Say.
At 81 years old, M. John Harrison is the oldest author on the list, recognized for his post-apocalyptic novel The End of Everything. Meanwhile, 28-year-old Djamel White is the sole Irish writer on the longlist, recognized for his debut All Them Dogs.
The Full 2026 Booker Longlist
The complete list of 13 books named to the 2026 longlist comprises:
- 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
Next Steps and Prizes
The competition will narrow further in the coming months. The longlist will be reduced to a shortlist of six books at the Southbank Centre in London on September 22. Each of the six shortlisted authors will receive £2,500 (approximately $3,300).
The ultimate winner of the 2026 Booker Prize will be announced at a ceremony in London on November 9, receiving £50,000 (a little more than $66,000).
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