So we have it, The Booker Prize Shortlist. Down to six novels. Since the news hit there have been so many confident pronouncements on socials that Marlon James is a certainty to win (again) with The Disappearers that it seems pointless to make us wait. Announce it already. Another much touted probable winner is John of John by Douglas Stuart (another, a previous winner).
I secretly hope that Elizabeth Strout wins. It is so damn hard to write books that are so accessible, intelligent and true. The Things We Never Say has been stunning readers all year who might not ordinarily want to face unvarnished truths. Maybe that is victory enough?
I am completely ignorant about the last three shortlisters, but now they have been given the nod, it would be rude and foolish not to explore what they have to offer.
Shortlisted
John of John by Douglas Stuart
This excavation of family, violence and shame is woven through with beautiful imagistic detail, and – unexpectedly – shades of hope. We loved the rich, textural detail of the story - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
Our View: John of John is quiet and detailed, but it has this grinding, earthy energy that pushes it along. It is an absolutely beautiful book set in a very - I wouldn’t say ugly, but stark - environment. It’s very cold, with no trees, up there in Scotland. The emotional clarity you get is reminiscent of the great works of the 20th century. That is what you get in this book.
Shortlisted
The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
A devastating look at the dangerous cracks in family life and in the contemporary world at large. Strout’s prose is brilliantly understated and all the more powerful for that - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
Our View: Quiet, devastating, uplifting and damning. The novel opens in America before Trump’s second election win and ends before the end of his second term. So we’re in very contemporary fiction territory. Almost as immediate as Ali Smith's work and just as brilliant but in a very different way. Artie Dam is a brand new character for Strout and the equal of her best, Olive Kitteridge, Bob Burgess and Lucy Barton. Artie is unhappy and wants to get off the world. The way Strout explores this heavy theme is something akin to magic. Her simple, direct and straight-forward prose produces a depth of emotion and intelligence that confounds critics and readers alike. Maybe the best book I'll read all year.
Shortlisted
The Disappearers by Marlon James
A book that examines territory Caribbean literature has rarely dared to occupy, as what begins as a theatrical story becomes something closer to a reckoning. James is a singular literary talent - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
Shortlisted
The End of Everything by M. John Harrison
A book not just about everything but about now. Shimmering and oblique, it holds the reader to the surface of something very grave and deep - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
Shortlisted
Black Bag by Luke Kennard
This of-the-moment satire considers anonymity and disgust, online rackets, and what it means to find love in our unstable times. We admired its sharply crafted sentences and humour - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
Shortlisted
May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry
A wonderfully enticing combination of themes, woven together with a delicacy of touch. You can’t read it without reflecting on the fragile boundary between the present and the past - The Booker Prize 2026 judges
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