Booker Prize 2021: Patricia Lockwood, Nadifa Mohamed, and Maggie Shipstead lead shortlist

Anuk Arudpragasam, Damon Galgut, and Richard Powers round out the selection

Clémence Michallon
Tuesday 14 September 2021 14:30 EDT
Comments
All six novels shortlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize
All six novels shortlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize (The Booker Prizes)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The 2021 Booker Prize shortlist has been unveiled.

The list of six authors was unveiled on Tuesday in a live online celebration. BBC arts correspondent Rebecca Jones chaired the event from central London.

Debut novelist Patricia Lockwood has made the shortlist for the first time, while Damon Galgut is shortlisted for the third time, and Richard Powers for the second time.

The Booker Prize for Fiction is open to works by writers of any nationality, written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. The list was chosen from 158 novels published in the UK or Ireland between 1 October 2020 and 30 September 2021.

Here are the six authors on the 2021 Booker Prize shortlist:

Anuk Arudpragasam (Sri Lankan) – A Passage North (Granta Books, Granta Publications)

Damon Galgut (South African) – The Promise (Chatto & Windus, Vintage, PRH)

Patricia Lockwood (American) – No One is Talking About This (Bloomsbury Circus, Bloomsbury Publishing)

Nadifa Mohamed (British/Somali) – The Fortune Men (Viking, Penguin General, PRH)

Richard Powers (American) – Bewilderment (Hutchinson Heinemann, PRH)

Maggie Shipstead (American) – Great Circle (Doubleday, Transworld Publishers, PRH)

“With so many ambitious and intelligent books before us, the judges engaged in rich discussions not only about the qualities of any given title, but often about the purpose of fiction itself,” Maya Jasanoff, chair of the 2021 judges, said. “We are pleased to present a shortlist that delivers as wide a range of original stories as it does voices and styles.”

The 2021 winner will be announced on 3 November. The winner of the 2021 Booker Prize receives £50,000 ($69,000) and typically enjoys international recognition.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in