The 2026 International Booker Prize has been awarded to Taiwan Travelogue, written by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ and translated from Mandarin Chinese by Lin King. Separately, the longlist for the 31st Women's Prize for Fiction was announced, featuring 16 novels.
International Booker Prize
Winner
Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated by Lin King, has won the 2026 International Booker Prize.
The award, in its tenth year, is presented annually for a work of fiction translated into English and published in the U.K. or Ireland. The winning author and translator will share the £50,000 prize.
Yáng and Lin King are the first Taiwanese and Taiwanese-American winners, respectively. The novel is presented as a rediscovered travel memoir set in 1930s Japanese-occupied Taiwan, following two main characters on a culinary tour.
The winning title was selected from 128 submissions. Shortlisted authors and translators each receive £5,000. Last year's winner was Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, translated by Deepa Bhasthi.
Finalists
Six books were named finalists for the award. The authors and translators originate from four continents. Five of the authors and four of the translators are women.
- The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated from German by Ruth Martin. The novel follows an Iranian family through the 1979 Revolution and their relocation to West Germany.
- She Who Remains by Rene Karabash, translated from Bulgarian by Izidora Angel. The story features a young woman in rural Albania who escapes an arranged marriage.
- The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, translated from German by Ross Benjamin. A fictionalized account of Austrian filmmaker G.W. Pabst, who faces pressure from the Nazi regime.
- On Earth As It Is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia, translated from Portuguese by Padma Viswanathan. A horror novella set in a remote penal colony.
- The Witch by Marie NDiaye, translated from French by Jordan Stump. This novel, originally published in 1996, follows a witch who passes her powers to her daughters.
- Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated from Mandarin Chinese by Lin King.
Longlist and Nominations
The 2024 longlist for the International Booker Prize featured 13 books. It included several authors previously shortlisted or longlisted for the prize, such as Olga Ravn, Daniel Kehlmann, Ia Genberg, Mathias Énard, and Gabriela Cabezón Cámara. Other notable longlisted titles included Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur, originally published in 1989 and banned in Iran, and The Remembered Soldier by Anjet Daanje.
The longlist was chosen from 128 titles published in the U.K. or Ireland between May 1, 2025, and April 30, 2026. Booker Prize Foundation chief executive Gaby Wood noted a record 34 original languages among submissions.
Judging Panel
The judges for the 2026 International Booker Prize included author Natasha Brown (chair), writer and professor Marcus du Sautoy, translator Sophie Hughes, writer and bookseller Troy Onyango, and novelist Nilanjana S. Roy.
Women's Prize for Fiction
Longlist
The longlist for the 31st Women’s Prize for Fiction was announced, featuring 16 novels. The annual award includes a prize of £30,000 and recognizes women's writing in the English language.
The full longlist is:
- Gloria Don’t Speak by Lucy Apps
- Paradiso 17 by Hannah Lillith Assadi
- Moderation by Elaine Castillo
- Flashlight by Susan Choi
- Dominion by Addie E Citchens
- The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine
- The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
- The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson
- The Others by Sheena Kalayil
- Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly
- Heart the Lover by Lily King
- Audition by Katie Kitamura
- A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
- Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
- The Best of Everything by Kit de Waal
- A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang
The longlisted novels explore a range of themes and settings, including political upheaval, environmental breakdown, and relationships between mothers and children. The list includes nine titles from independent publishers and seven debut novels.
Judging Panel and Key Dates
The judging panel for the Women's Prize for Fiction is chaired by former Australian prime minister Julia Gillard. She is joined by Mona Arshi, Salma El-Wardany, Cariad Lloyd, and Annie Macmanus.
A shortlist of six books will be announced on April 22. The winner will be revealed on June 11 at a ceremony in London.