The 2021 International Booker Prize shortlist

Here are the six novels shortlisted for the 2021 International Booker Prize, the prestigious award which celebrates the finest translated fiction from around the world.

The shortlist was selected by the 2021 judging panel consisting of: cultural historian and novelist, Lucy Hughes-Hallett (chair); journalist and writer, Aida Edemariam; Man Booker shortlisted novelist, Neel Mukherjee; Professor of the History of Slavery, Olivette Otele; and poet, translator and biographer, George Szirtes.

The full shortlist is:

At Night All Blood is Black by David Diop, translated from French by Anna Mocschovakis, Pushkin Press.

The Dangers of Smoking in Bed by Mariana Enríquez, translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell, Granta Books.

When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut, translated from Spanish by Adrian Nathan West, Pushkin Press.

The Employees by Olga Ravn, translated from Danish by Martin Aitken, Lolli Editions.

In Memory of Memory by Maria Stepanova, translated from Russian by Sasha Dugdale, Fitzcarraldo Editions.

The War of the Poor by Éric Vuillard, translated from French by Mark Polizzotti, Pan Macmillan, Picador.

Please note that due to Level 5 restrictions it is not possible to reserve or borrow physical books.