Booker Prize 2026 longlist named

The Booker Prize Foundation published the 2026 longlist on Tuesday, July 28, naming 13 novels for this year’s Booker Prize and setting up the next stage of one of English-language fiction’s biggest annual contests. The list includes past winners Marlon James and Douglas Stuart, along with previous shortlistee Elizabeth Strout, according to the prize’s official 2026 page. (thebookerprizes.com) The foundation said the selection was made by a five-member judging panel chaired by classicist, writer and broadcaster Mary Beard. It also said the books were chosen from 163 submissions published in the UK and/or Ireland between Oct. 1, 2025 and Sept. 30, 2026. ### Which writers are on the 2026 Booker longlist? The 13 longlisted novels are *The Shadow of the Object*, *Switzy*, *Helen of Nowhere*, *The End of Everything*, *The Disappearers*, *Black Bag*, *The Renovation*, *May We Feed the King*, *The Palm House*, *The Things We Never Say*, *John of John*, *All Them Dogs* and *The Vivisectors*, the Booker Prize website said. The foundation’s materials identify James, Stuart and Strout among the best-known names on the list. The Booker Prize Foundation said the longlisted authors represent seven countries and three continents, with most of the writers from the UK. It said 10 of the 13 authors are appearing on the Booker longlist for the first time, including three debut novelists. (thebookerprizes.com) ### Why have some outlets called this year’s field unusually open? Wanted Online described the 2026 lineup on Aug. 5 as one of the most unpredictable Booker longlists in years, pointing to the mix of established names, debut writers and less conventional stories in contention. The Booker Prize Foundation used similar language in its own announcement, saying the list “rewards risk.” (thebookerprizes.com) Mary Beard said in the foundation’s press release that the longlisted novelists “brilliantly muster the power of words to take the reader to new places, to see old places from new angles, to change minds.” The official announcement also said the books range across humour, heartbreak, satire and surreality, with fresh takes on dystopian science fiction, the campus novel and the crime thriller. (thebookerprizes.com) ### What range of books did the judges say they chose? The Booker Prize Foundation said the longlist moves across settings including Mexico City, post-apocalyptic Kent, Zurich, the Outer Hebrides, West Dublin, Kingston in the late 1980s and coastal Massachusetts before the 2024 U.S. election. (thebookerprizes.com) It said the books deal with memory, mortality, metamorphosis, murder, reconciliation and retribution. The official materials also highlighted the spread of backgrounds among the nominees, saying the longlist includes poets, playwrights, editors and critics, as well as a former competitive trampolinist, a former lawyer, a fashion designer and a former child actor. (thebookerprizes.com) The foundation said the list spans a debut novel by a 28-year-old and the 13th novel by an 81-year-old. ### Who are this year’s judges? Mary Beard is chairing the 2026 panel, joined by poet and educator Raymond Antrobus, musician and broadcaster Jarvis Cocker, journalist and critic Rebecca Liu, and novelist, poet and essayist Patricia Lockwood, according to the Booker Prize Foundation. (thebookerprizes.com) The prize says the judges select the best sustained work of fiction written in English and published in the UK and Ireland. ### What happens next in the Booker timetable? The Booker Prize Foundation said the shortlist of six books will be announced at a public event at the Southbank Centre in London on Sept. 22, with all five judges appearing in conversation. (thebookerprizes.com) The winner will then be announced on Nov. 9 at a ceremony at Old Billingsgate in London. The Booker Prize website said the winner receives 50,000 pounds, while each of the other shortlisted authors receives 2,500 pounds. Those dates and payments now frame the next two milestones in the 2026 prize cycle. (thebookerprizes.com)