London (AFP) – Who will succeed British writer of Hungarian origin David Szalay? The Booker Prize jury will reveal Monday evening the winner of this prestigious prize which rewards a work of fiction in English, and for which six novels are in the running.
Published on: 09/11/2026 - 15:46
Four British authors are among these six finalists for this prize, equivalent to the French Goncourt, in a selection which explores in particular the themes of mourning, sexuality and gender roles.
Among the finalist authors, two are women and two are former winners, in the running for a double: the Jamaican Marlon James, with “The Disappearers”, and the British-American Douglas Stuart, with “John of John”.
Hailed by critics, Marlon James' more than 600-page epic, "The Missing", follows a survivor of a homophobic attack targeting a theater group in Kingston in the 1980s. The writer won the Booker in 2015 with "A Brief History of Seven Killings".
Douglas Stuart, crowned in 2020 for “Shuggie Bain”, is once again in the running with a poignant exploration of the bonds between a father and his son, weakened by shame and secrets, in the remote Scottish islands of the Outer Hebrides,
The American Elizabeth Strout, Pulitzer Prize winner in 2009, was selected for her novel "The Things We Never Say", centered on Artie Dam, a 57-year-old history professor.
Apparently, everything goes well for him but the almost sixty-year-old is obsessed with the idea of ending his life. The revelation of a heavy secret will upset the balance of his existence.
- Jarvis Cocker member of the jury -
The British Rebecca Perry is selected for her first novel, “May We Feed The King”.
The work follows a curator involved in the development of a palace on the occasion of its 750th anniversary, who immerses herself in the history of the place, that of a king acceding to the throne against his will, after the premature death of his two older brothers.
The post-apocalyptic novel "The End of Everything" by John Harrison, 81, also British, takes place in an England struck by a mysterious catastrophe in the near future.
Philip Tennent survives by collecting objects washed up by the sea on the Kent coast, until the day his discovery of a strange "artifact", capable of transforming and imitating humans, leads him on a quest that will change his destiny.
With “Black Bag”, the British Luke Kennard imagines the story of a thirty-year-old actor ready to accept all kinds of bizarre small roles to be able to pay his rent.
This is how he is recruited by a university professor for an “experiment” in which he plays Black Bag, a character wrapped from head to toe in a black leather bag, with just two holes for eyes, and instructions to remain mute.
The British writer of Hungarian origin David Szalay won the 2025 edition of the Booker with “Flesh”, the journey and social ascension of a taciturn man from his native Hungary to London.
The winner of the Booker Prize, a prize created in 1969, will receive 50,000 books (around 58,000 euros).
The jury, made up of five members, made a selection of thirteen, then six works after having read 163.
The 2026 jury included the singer of the group Pulp, Jarvis Cocker, and the historian Mary Beard, British specialist in Antiquity.
Awarded since 1969, the Booker Prize has contributed to the success of writers like Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood and Arundhati Roy. It is also the promise of international fame synonymous with success in bookstores.
© 2026 AFP
The content you are trying to access does not exist or is no longer available.
