The longlist for the International Booker Prize has been revealed, with 13 books in contention for the British award given annually to “the best works of long-form fiction or collections of short stories translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland.”
The Wax Child, written by Olga Ravn and translated from Danish by Martin Aitken, made the longlist; the novel is also a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle’s Gregg Barrios Book in Translation Prize. Taiwan Travelogue, written by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ and translated from Mandarin Chinese by Lin King, which won the 2024 National Book Award for translated literature, also made the International Booker longlist.
Two books that were finalists for the 2025 National Book Award for translated literature were longlisted for the International Booker: We Are Green and Trembling, written by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara and translated from Spanish by Robin Myers, was also longlisted, and The Remembered Soldier, written by Anjet Daanje and translated from Dutch by David McKay.
The Director, written by Daniel Kehlmann and translated from German by Ross Benjamin, made the longlist, alongside The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran, written by Shida Bazyar and translated from German by Ruth Martin; The Deserters, written by Mathias Énard and translated from French by Charlotte Mandell; Small Comfort, written by Ia Genberg and translated from Swedish by Kira Josefsson; and She Who Remains, written by Rene Karabash and translated from Bulgarian by Izidora Angel.
Also making the longlist were On Earth as It Is Beneath, written by Ana Paula Maia and translated from Portuguese by Padma Viswanathan; The Duke, written by Matteo Melchiorre and translated from Italian by Antonella Lettieri; The Witch, written by Marie NDiaye and translated from French by Jordan Stump; and Women Without Men, written by Shahrnush Parsipur and translated from Persian by Faridoun Farrokh.
The International Booker Prize comes with a cash award of 50,000 British pounds, or about $67,500. The shortlist for this year’s prize will be announced on March 31, with the winner revealed at a ceremony in London on May 19.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
