The International Booker Prize (formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize) is an international

literary award A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. Ma ...

hosted in the United Kingdom. The introduction of the International Prize to complement the

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

was announced in June 2004. Sponsored by the Man Group, from 2005 until 2015 the award was given every two years to a living author of any nationality for a body of work published in English or generally available in English translation. It rewarded one author's "continued creativity, development and overall contribution to fiction on the world stage", and was a recognition of the writer's body of work rather than any one title. Since 2016, the award has been given annually to a single book translated into English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland, with a £50,000 prize for the winning title, shared equally between author and translator. Crankstart, the

charitable foundation A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable act ...

of Sir Michael Moritz and his wife, Harriet Heyman began supporting The Booker Prizes on 1 June 2019. From this date, the prizes were known as The Booker Prize and The International Booker Prize. Of their support for The Booker Prize Foundation and the prizes, Moritz commented: "Neither of us can imagine a day where we don’t spend time reading a book. The Booker Prizes are ways of spreading the word about the insights, discoveries, pleasures and joy that spring from great fiction".

History

Pre-2016

Whereas the Man Booker Prize was open only to writers from the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

, Ireland, and Zimbabwe, the International Prize was open to all nationalities who had work available in English including translations. The award was worth £60,000 and given every two years to a living author's entire body of literature, similar to the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Man Booker International Prize also allowed for a separate award for translation. If applicable, the winning author could choose their translators to receive a prize sum of £15,000. The 2005 inaugural winner of the prize was Albanian writer Ismail Kadare. Praising its concerted judgement, the journalist Hephzibah Anderson noted that the Man Booker International Prize was "fast becoming the more significant award, appearing an ever more competent alternative to the Nobel".

2016 onwards

In July 2015 it was announced that the ''Independent'' Foreign Fiction Prize would be disbanded. The prize money from that award would be folded into the Man Booker International Prize, which would henceforth act similarly to the ''Independent'' prize: awarding an annual book of fiction translated into English, with the £50,000 prize split between author and translator. Each shortlisted author and translator receives £2,500. Its aim is to encourage publishing and reading of quality works in translation and to highlight the work of translators. Judges select a longlist of 12 or 13 books in March (“the Booker Dozen”), followed by a shortlist of six in April, with the winner announced in May.

Nominations 2005-2015

2005

The inaugural Man Booker International Prize was judged by John Carey (Chair), Alberto Manguel and Azar Nafisi. The nominees were announced on 2 June 2005 at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Albanian novelist Ismail Kadare was named the inaugural International Prize winner in 2005. Head judge, Professor John Carey said Kadare is "a universal writer in the tradition of storytelling that goes back to Homer." Kadare said he was "deeply honoured" at being awarded the prize. Kadare was also able to select a translator to receive an additional prize of £15,000. The writer received his award in Edinburgh on 27 June. ;Winner * Ismail Kadare ;Nominees *

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, teacher, environmental activist, and inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of non-fiction, nin ...

(Canada) * Saul Bellow (US) * Gabriel García Márquez (Colombia) *

Günter Grass Günter Wilhelm Grass (born Graß; ; 16 October 1927 – 13 April 2015) was a German novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor, and recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature. He was born in the Free City of Da ...

(Germany) * Ismail Kadare (Albania) *

Milan Kundera Milan Kundera (, ; born 1 April 1929) is a Czech writer who went into exile in France in 1975, becoming a naturalised French citizen in 1981. Kundera's Czechoslovak citizenship was revoked in 1979, then conferred again in 2019. He "sees himself ...

(Czech Republic) * Stanisław Lem (Poland) *

Doris Lessing Doris May Lessing (; 22 October 1919 – 17 November 2013) was a British-Zimbabwean novelist. She was born to British parents in Iran, where she lived until 1925. Her family then moved to Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), where she remain ...

(UK) * Ian McEwan (UK) * Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt) *

Tomas Eloy Martinez Tomas may refer to: People * Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name * Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name * Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name * Tomas (surname), a French and Croatian surna ...

(Argentina) *

Kenzaburō Ōe is a Japanese writer and a major figure in contemporary Japanese literature. His novels, short stories and essays, strongly influenced by French and American literature and literary theory, deal with political, social and philosophical issues, i ...

(Japan) * Cynthia Ozick (US) * Philip Roth (US) * Muriel Spark (UK) *

Antonio Tabucchi Antonio Tabucchi (; 24 September 1943 – 25 March 2012) was an Italian writer and academic who taught Portuguese language and literature at the University of Siena, Italy. Deeply in love with Portugal, he was an expert, critic and translator of ...

(Italy) *

John Updike John Hoyer Updike (March 18, 1932 – January 27, 2009) was an American novelist, poet, short-story writer, art critic, and literary critic. One of only four writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once (the others being Booth ...

(US) *

A.B. Yehoshua Avraham Gabriel Yehoshua ( he, אברהם גבריאל (בולי) יהושע; 9 December 1936 – 14 June 2022) was an Israeli novelist, essayist, and playwright. ''The New York Times'' called him the "Israeli Faulkner". Underlying themes in Ye ...

(Israel)

2007

The 2007 prize was judged by Elaine Showalter,

Nadine Gordimer Nadine Gordimer (20 November 192313 July 2014) was a South African writer and political activist. She received the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize in Literature in 1991, recognized as a writer "who through her magnificent epic writin ...

and Colm Tóibin. The nominees for the second Man Booker International Prize were announced on 12 April 2007 at Massey College in Toronto. Nigerian author Chinua Achebe was awarded the International Prize for his literary career in 2007. Judge Nadine Gordimer said Achebe was "the father of modern African literature" and that he was "integral" to world literature. Achebe received his award on 28 June in Oxford. ;Winner * Chinua Achebe ;Nominees * Chinua Achebe (Nigeria) *

(Canada) *

John Banville William John Banville (born 8 December 1945) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, adapter of dramas and screenwriter. Though he has been described as "the heir to Proust, via Nabokov", Banville himself maintains that W. B. Yeats and Henry J ...

(Ireland) * Peter Carey (Australia) * Don DeLillo (US) * Carlos Fuentes (Mexico) *

(UK) * Ian McEwan (UK) *

Harry Mulisch Harry Kurt Victor Mulisch ( ; 29 July 1927 – 30 October 2010) was a Dutch writer. He wrote more than 80 novels, plays, essays, poems, and philosophical reflections. Mulisch's works have been translated into over thirty languages. Along with Wi ...

(Netherlands) * Alice Munro (Canada) * Michael Ondaatje (Sri Lanka/Canada) * Amos Oz (Israel) * Philip Roth (US) * Salman Rushdie (India/UK) * Michel Tournier (France)

2009

The 2009 prize was judged by Jane Smiley (Chair), Amit Chaudhuri and Andrey Kurkov. The nominees for the third Man Booker International Prize were announced on 18 March 2009 at

The New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) ...

. Canadian short story writer Munro was named the winner of the prize in 2009 for her lifetime body of work. Judge Jane Smiley said picking a winner had been "a challenge", but Munro had won the panel over. On Munro's work, Smiley said "Her work is practically perfect. Any writer has to gawk when reading her because her work is very subtle and precise. Her thoughtfulness about every subject is so concentrated." Munro, who said she was "totally amazed and delighted" at her win, received the award at Trinity College Dublin on 25 June. ;Winner * Alice Munro ;Nominees * Peter Carey (Australia) *

Evan S. Connell Evan Shelby Connell Jr. (August 17, 1924 – January 10, 2013) was a U.S. novelist, short-story writer, essayist and author of epic historical works. He also published under the name Evan S. Connell Jr. In 2009, Connell was nominated for the M ...

(US) * Mahasweta Devi (India) * E. L. Doctorow (US) * James Kelman (UK) * Arnošt Lustig (Czech Republic) * Alice Munro (Canada) * V. S. Naipaul (Trinidad/UK) *

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (; born James Ngugi; 5 January 1938) is a Literature of Kenya, Kenyan author and academic who writes primarily in Gikuyu language, Gikuyu and who formerly wrote in English language, English. He has been described as having bee ...

(Kenya) *

Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (born June 16, 1938) is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and non-fiction. Her novels '' Bla ...

(US) *

(Italy) *

Dubravka Ugrešić Dubravka Ugrešić (; born 27 March 1949) is a Yugoslav and later Croatian writer. A graduate of University of Zagreb, she has been based in Amsterdam since 1996 and refuses to identify as a Croatian writer. Early life and education Ugrešić ...

(Croatia) * Lyudmila Ulitskaya (Russia) *

Mario Vargas Llosa Jorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquess of Vargas Llosa (born 28 March 1936), more commonly known as Mario Vargas Llosa (, ), is a Peruvian novelist, journalist, essayist and former politician, who also holds Spanish citizenship. Vargas Ll ...

(Peru)

2011

The 2011 prize was judged by

Rick Gekoski Richard Abraham Gekoski (born August 25, 1944) is an American-British writer, broadcaster, rare book dealer and a former member of the English Department at Warwick University. Early life and education Gekoski was raised in Alexandria, Virginia, ...

(Chair),

Carmen Callil Dame Carmen Thérèse Callil, (15 July 1938 – 17 October 2022) was an Australian publisher, writer and critic who spent most of her career in the United Kingdom. She founded Virago Press in 1973 and received the Benson Medal from the Royal ...

(withdrew in protest over choice of winner) and

Justin Cartwright Justin James Cartwright (20 May 1943 – 3 December 2018) was a British novelist, originally from South Africa. Biography Cartwright was born in Cape Town, South Africa, but grew up in Johannesburg where his father was the editor of the ''Ran ...

. The nominees for the fourth Man Booker International Prize were announced on 30 March 2011 at a ceremony in Sydney, Australia. John le Carré asked to be removed from consideration, saying he was "flattered", but that he does not compete for literary prizes. However, judge Rick Gekoski said although he was disappointed that le Carré wanted to withdraw, his name would remain on the list. American novelist Roth was announced as the winner on 18 May 2011 at the Sydney Writers' Festival. Of his win, Roth said "This is a great honour and I'm delighted to receive it." The writer said he hoped the prize would bring him to the attention of readers around the world who are not currently familiar with his body of work. Roth received his award in London on 28 June; however, he was unable to attend in person due to ill health, so he sent a short video instead. After Roth was announced as the winner, Carmen Callil withdrew from the judging panel, saying "I don't rate him as a writer at all... in 20 years' time will anyone read him?" Callil later wrote an editorial in '' The Guardian'' explaining her position and why she chose to leave the panel. ;Winner * Philip Roth ;Nominees * Wang Anyi (China) *

Juan Goytisolo Juan Goytisolo Gay (6 January 1931 – 4 June 2017) was a Spanish poet, essayist, and novelist. He lived in Marrakesh from 1997 until his death in 2017. He was considered Spain's greatest living writer at the beginning of the 21st century, yet ...

(Spain) * James Kelman (UK) * John le Carré (UK) *

Amin Maalouf Amin Maalouf (; ar, أمين معلوف; born 25 February 1949) is a Lebanese-born French"Amin ...

(Lebanon) * David Malouf (Australia) *

Dacia Maraini Dacia Maraini (; born November 13, 1936) is an Italian writer. Maraini's work focuses on women's issues, and she has written numerous plays and novels. She has won awards for her work, including the Formentor Prize for ''L'età del malessere'' ...

(Italy) * Rohinton Mistry (India/Canada) * Philip Pullman (UK) * Marilynne Robinson (US) * Philip Roth (US) * Su Tong (China) * Anne Tyler (US)

2013

The 2013 prize was judged by

Christopher Ricks Sir Christopher Bruce Ricks (born 18 September 1933) is a British literary critic and scholar. He is the William M. and Sara B. Warren Professor of the Humanities at Boston University (US), co-director of the Editorial Institute at Boston Univ ...

(Chair), Elif Batuman, Aminatta Forna, Yiyun Li and Tim Parks. The nominees for the fifth Man Booker International Prize were announced on 24 January 2013. Marilynne Robinson was the only writer out of the ten nominees who had been nominated for the prize before. Lydia Davis, best known as a short story writer, was announced as the winner of the 2013 prize on 22 May at a ceremony at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The official announcement of Davis' award on the Man Booker Prize website described her work as having "the brevity and precision of poetry." Judging panel chair Christopher Ricks commented that "There is vigilance to her stories, and great imaginative attention. Vigilance as how to realise things down to the very word or syllable; vigilance as to everybody's impure motives and illusions of feeling." ;Winner * Lydia Davis ;Nominees * U R Ananthamurthy (India) *

Aharon Appelfeld Aharon Appelfeld ( he, אהרן אפלפלד; born Ervin Appelfeld; February 16, 1932 – January 4, 2018) was an Israeli novelist and Holocaust survivor. Biography Ervin Appelfeld was born in Jadova Commune, Storojineț County, in the Bukovina ...

(Israel) * Lydia Davis (US) * Intizar Hussain (Pakistan) *

Marie NDiaye Marie NDiaye (born 4 June 1967) is a French novelist, playwright and screenwriter. She published her first novel, ''Quant au riche avenir'', when she was 17. She won the Prix Goncourt in 2009. Her play ''Papa doit manger'' is the sole play by a ...

(France) * Josip Novakovich (Croatia/United States) * Marilynne Robinson (United States) *

Vladimir Sorokin Vladimir Georgiyevich Sorokin (russian: link=no, Влади́мир Гео́ргиевич Соро́кин; born 7 August 1955) is a contemporary postmodern Russian writer and dramatist. He has been described as one of the most popular writers ...

(Russia) * Peter Stamm (Switzerland) *

Yan Lianke Yan may refer to: Chinese states * Yan (state) (11th century – 222 BC), a major state in northern China during the Zhou dynasty * Yan (Han dynasty kingdom), first appearing in 206 BC * Yan (Three Kingdoms kingdom), officially claimed inde ...

(China)

2015

The 2015 prize was judged by Marina Warner (Chair), Nadeem Aslam,

Elleke Boehmer Elleke Boehmer, FRSL, FRHistS (born 1961) is Professor of World Literature in English at the University of Oxford, and a Professorial Governing Body Fellow at Wolfson College. She is an acclaimed novelist and a founding figure in the field of ...

, Edwin Frank and

Wen-chin Ouyang Wen-chin Ouyang, () is a professor of Arabic literature and comparative literature at SOAS, University of London.Ben EastWill Arab novel expert judge for 2015 Man Booker International Prize help region’s chances? The National, October 14, 2013. ...

. The nominees for the sixth Man Booker International Prize were announced on 24 March 2015. László Krasznahorkai became the first author from Hungary to receive the Man Booker award. The prize was given to recognise his "achievement in fiction on the world stage". British author Marina Warner, who chaired the panel of judges that selected Krasznahorkai for the award, compared his writing to Kafka and Beckett. Krasznahorkai's translators, George Szirtes and

Ottilie Mulzet Ottilie Mulzet (born July, 1960 in Toronto) is a literary translator of Hungarian poetry and prose whose work has been recognized with several major literary awards. She is known in particular for her translations of several books by László Kra ...

, shared the £15,000 translators' prize. ;Winner *

László Krasznahorkai László Krasznahorkai (; born 5 January 1954) is a Hungarian novelist and screenwriter known for difficult and demanding novels, often labeled postmodern, with dystopian and melancholic themes. Several of his works, including his novels '' ...

;Nominees *

César Aira César Aira ( Argentine Spanish: ; born 23 February 1949 in Coronel Pringles, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentinian writer and translator, and an exponent of contemporary Argentinian literature. Aira has published over a hundred short book ...

(Argentina) *

Ibrahim al-Koni Ibrāhīm al-Kōnī (sometimes translated as Ibrāhīm Kūnī) ( ar, ابراهيم الكوني) is a Libyan writer and is considered to be one of the most prolific Arab novelists. Biography Born in 1948 in the Fezzan Region, Ghadamis City, ...

(Libya) *

Hoda Barakat Hoda Barakat ( ar, هدى بركات) (born 1952) is an award-winning Lebanese novelist. She lived most of her early life in Beirut before moving to Paris, where she now resides. She has published six novels, two plays, a book of short stories, a ...

(Lebanon) * Maryse Condé (Guadeloupe) * Mia Couto (Mozambique) * Amitav Ghosh (India) * Fanny Howe (United States) *

(Hungary) *

Alain Mabanckou Alain Mabanckou (born 24 February 1966) is a novelist, journalist, poet, and academic, a French citizen born in the Republic of the Congo, he is currently a Professor of Literature at UCLA. He is best known for his novels and non-fiction writing d ...

(Republic of the Congo) * Marlene van Niekerk (South Africa)

Nominations 2016-Present

The chair of each year's judging panel is shown in bold text.

2016

The nominees for the seventh Man Booker International Prize were announced on 14 April 2016. The six nominees were chosen from a longlist of thirteen. Han became the first Korean author to win the prize and, under the new format for 2016, Smith became the first translator to share the prize. British journalist Boyd Tonkin, who chaired the judging panel, said that the decision was unanimous. He also said of the book "in a style both lyrical and lacerating, it reveals the impact of this great refusal both on the heroine herself and on those around her. This compact, exquisite and disturbing book will linger long in the minds, and maybe the dreams, of its readers."

2017

The longlist for the eighth Man Booker International Prize was announced on 14 March 2017, and the shortlist on 20 April 2017. The winner was announced on 14 June 2017. Grossman became the first Israeli author to win the prize, sharing the £50,000 award with translator Jessica Cohen. Nick Barley, who is the director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, described the book as "an ambitious high-wire act of a novel hatshines a spotlight on the effects of grief, without any hint of sentimentality. The central character is challenging and flawed, but completely compelling." The novel won over 126 other contenders.

2018

The longlist for the ninth Man Booker International Prize was announced on 12 March 2018. The shortlist of six books was announced on 12 April 2018 at an event at Somerset House in London. The winner was announced on 22 May 2018 at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Tokarczuk is the first Polish author to win the award, and shared the prize with Croft. Lisa Appignanesi described Tokarczuk as a "writer of wonderful wit, imagination, and literary panache."

2019

The longlist for the Man Booker International Prize was announced on 13 March 2019. The shortlist was announced on 9 April 2019. The winner was announced on 21 May 2019; Jokha Alharthi is the first author writing in Arabic to have won the Man Booker International Prize. Bettany Hughes said of ''Celestial Bodies'' that, "We felt we were getting access to ideas and thoughts and experiences you aren’t normally given in English. It avoids every stereotype you might expect in its analysis of gender and race and social distinction and slavery."

2020

The longlist for the prize was announced on 27 February 2020. The shortlist was announced 2 April 2020. The winner announcement was originally planned for 19 May 2020, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic it was postponed to 26 August 2020.

2021

The longlist was announced on 30 March 2021, the shortlist on 22 April, and the winning author and translator on 2 June 2021.

2022

The longlist was announced on 10 March 2022; the shortlist on 7 April 2022 and the winner on 26 May 2022.

2023

The longlist was announced on 14 March 2023, the shortlist on 18 April 2023, and the winner on 23 May 2023. Gospodinov's ''Time Shelter'' was the first Bulgarian-language book to win the prize.

References

External links

Official website
*
Booker Prizes archive webpage
{{International Booker Prize 2005 establishments in the United Kingdom Awards established in 2005 International literary awards British fiction awards Translation awards International English-language literary awards