Six novels on the Booker Prize 2026 shortlist
Previous winners and first-time shortlistees share this year’s final selection.
The Booker Prize Foundation announced its six-book shortlist on 22 September 2026. The selection includes previous winners Marlon James and Douglas Stuart, alongside Elizabeth Strout, M. John Harrison, Luke Kennard and Rebecca Perry.
The shortlisted novels are The End of Everything by Harrison, The Disappearers by James, Black Bag by Kennard, May We Feed the King by Perry, The Things We Never Say by Strout and John of John by Stuart.
The panel is chaired by Mary Beard. The Foundation says the shortlist was drawn from a longlist of thirteen books selected from 163 submissions.
Readers can use the official announcement to explore the books, publishers and accompanying author material. This is a shortlist briefing, not a review of novels we have not evaluated.