Prepare to be captivated by a literary journey that delves into the darkest corners of history, mythology, and human experience—because the 2026 International Booker Prize longlist is here, and it’s anything but ordinary. From witches and Nazi collaborators to banned books and haunted prisons, this year’s selection is a testament to the power of storytelling across borders. But here’s where it gets controversial: how do we reconcile the beauty of these translated works with the often unsettling truths they reveal? Let’s dive in.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the International Booker Prize, which celebrates the best in translated fiction. A ‘Booker dozen’ of 13 books have made the longlist, with one author-translator pair set to share the £50,000 prize. Among the contenders are familiar names like Olga Ravn, Daniel Kehlmann, Ia Genberg, Mathias Énard, and Gabriela Cabezón Cámara—all of whom have previously been shortlisted for this prestigious award.
Daniel Kehlmann’s The Director, translated by Ross Benjamin, stands out as a bold exploration of morality and complicity. Inspired by the life of filmmaker GW Pabst, who collaborated with the Third Reich, the novel has been hailed as Kehlmann’s best work yet. Nina Allan, in a Guardian review, described it as having ‘all the darkness, shapeshifting ambiguity, and glittering unease of a modern Grimms’ fairytale.’ But here’s the question: Can art ever truly separate itself from the artist’s actions? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Olga Ravn’s The Wax Child, translated by Martin Aitken, takes readers back to the chilling 17th-century Danish witch trials. Ravn’s visceral portrayal of witchcraft is echoed in another longlisted title, The Witch by French writer Marie NDiaye, translated by Jordan Stump. Originally published in 1996, NDiaye’s work was previously longlisted in 2016 and shortlisted in 2013. Witchcraft, it seems, is a theme that continues to haunt and fascinate.
And this is the part most people miss: Shahrnush Parsipur’s Women Without Men, translated by Faridoun Farrokh, was first published in Persian in 1989. Parsipur, imprisoned twice in Iran for her writing, tells the story of five women who find refuge together in a garden outside Tehran. The book has been banned in Iran since its release, raising questions about censorship and the enduring power of literature. Is it ever right to silence a story? Weigh in below.
Other notable works include Ia Genberg’s Small Comfort, a collection of interconnected stories translated by Kira Josefsson, and Mathias Énard’s The Deserters, translated by Charlotte Mandell. Énard’s nomination marks the 17th for Fitzcarraldo Editions, the most-nominated imprint in the prize’s history. Meanwhile, Peirene Press introduces Rene Karabash’s debut novel, She Who Remains, translated by Izidora Angel, which explores the life of a woman who becomes a sworn virgin to escape an arranged marriage.
Controversy doesn’t stop there: Matteo Melchiorre’s The Duke, translated by Antonella Lettieri, and Gabriela Cabezón Cámara’s We Are Green and Trembling, translated by Robin Myers, offer starkly different perspectives on power and identity. Cámara’s novel, which won the US National Book Award for translated literature last year, is a bold exploration of environmental and emotional turmoil.
Rounding out the longlist are The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated by Ruth Martin; The Remembered Soldier by Anjet Daanje, translated by David McKay; On Earth As It Is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia, translated by Padma Viswanathan; and Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated by Lin King.
Judging chair Natasha Brown noted that many of the submissions examined the devastating consequences of war, a theme reflected in the longlist. But the collection also includes ‘petty squabbles between neighbours, mysterious mountain villages, big pharma conspiracies, witchy women, ill-fated lovers, a haunted prison, and obscure film references.’ With page counts ranging from ‘pocket-friendly’ to ‘doorstopper,’ there’s something for every reader.
The shortlist of six books will be announced on March 31, with each shortlisted title receiving £5,000. The winner will be revealed on May 19 at a ceremony at Tate Modern in London. Joining Brown on the judging panel are mathematician Marcus du Sautoy, translator Sophie Hughes, and writers Troy Onyango and Nilanjana S Roy.
This year’s longlist was selected from 128 titles published in the UK or Ireland between May 1, 2025, and April 30, 2026. Booker Prize Foundation CEO Gaby Wood highlighted that the submissions were originally written in a record 34 languages, a sign of the growing diversity of translated works available to anglophone readers.
Last year’s winner, Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, translated by Deepa Bhasthi, was the first short story collection to take home the prize. Previous winners include Han Kang, Olga Tokarczuk, and Georgi Gospodinov. Notably, four authors recognized by the prize for a single book have gone on to win the Nobel Prize for their body of work: Han, Tokarczuk, Jon Fosse, and László Krasznahorkai.
So, what do you think? Does this year’s longlist challenge your perceptions of literature and history? Which book are you most excited to read? And more importantly, can a story ever be too controversial? Share your thoughts below—we can’t wait to hear from you!
