What Makes 2022 International Booker Prize Longlist Unique

The International Booker Prize has announced the longlist of its 2022 edition. The list of 13 writers includes books from 11 languages and 12 countries across four continents. They were chosen from a record 135 submissions.

The £50,000 prize, which celebrates the finest translated fiction from around the world, is split between the winning author and translator. The shortlist will be announced 7th April 7th and the winner 26th May.

The panel of five judges includes: translator Frank Wynne, author and academic Merve Emre, writer and lawyer Petina Gappah, writer and comedian Viv Groskop, and translator and author Jeremy Tiang. Wynne is the first translator to chair the judges panel.

Frank Wynne, chair of the judges, said the longlisted books explore the breadth and depth of human experience.

“From the intimate to the epic, the numinous to the profane, the books make up a passionately-debated longlist that trace a ring around the world. These 13 titles from 12 countries and 11 languages explore the breadth and depth of human experience, and are a testament to the power of language and literature,” he noted.However, this year’s edition is unique because of the inclusion of Hindi for the first time in the prize’s history. The list is also a fascinating mix of books by writers and translators new to the prize as well as past nominees and notably two winners.

It will be recalled that Nobel Prize Laureate Olga Tokarczuk and translator Jennifer Croft won the International Booker in 2018 with Flights, while David Grossman and translator Jessica Cohen won in 2017 for A Horse Walks Into a Bar.

They are joined by exciting newcomers like Bora Chung and Sang Young Park, both translated by Anton Hur — a rare and impressive feat — among many others.

The prize is awarded every year to a single book translated into English and published in the UK and Ireland. It aims to encourage more publishing and reading of international fiction from all over the world and to promote and recognize the vital work of translators.

Here is the 2022 International Booker Prize Longlist

Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung, translated from Korean by Anton Hur

After The Sun by Jonas Eika, translated from Danish by Sherilyn Nicolette Hellberg

A New Name: Septology VI-VII by Jon Fosse, translated from Norwegian by Damion Searls

More Than I Love My Life by David Grossman, translated from Hebrew by Jessica Cohen

The Book of Mother by Violaine Huisman, translated from French by Leslie Camhi

Heaven by Mieko Kawakami, translated from Japanese by Samuel Bett and David Boyd

Paradais by Fernanda Melchor, translated from Spanish by Sophie Hughes

Love in the Big City by Sang Young Park, translated from Korean by Anton Hur

Happy Stories, Mostly by Norman Erikson Pasaribu, translated from Indonesian by Tiffany Tsao

Elena Knows by Claudia Pineiro, translated from Spanish by Frances Riddle

Phenotypes by Paulo Scott, translated from Portuguese by Daniel Hahn

Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree, translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell

The Books of Jacob by Olga Tokarczuk, translated from Polish by Jennifer Croft

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