Book Awards & lingering lists
This is my first time to witness the ‘award season’ as someone a bit more active in the commercial book scene, and thus my first time taking note of the longlist posts and allocations for all the major book awards.
We were lucky enough to host 2 nominees for the ‘Women’s Prize’ at our February 2025 retreat and it was a delight to chat with Lucy Steeds about her debut novel, ‘The Artists’, and interview Sanam Mahloudji, to discuss her debut, ‘The Persians’. I cannot imagine the excitement and honour for the authors, and its enjoyable to be a witness to the build-up and clever promotion around the awards.
There is a lot going on – so much to read, so little time!
As someone who likes to finish a task fully, I am constantly reminding myself that ‘its okay to just read what I fancy’, but find myself still trying to stay on top of what I am ‘supposed’ to be reading.
I say this as someone who isn’t even being sent book mail from publishers, so I truly have limited external pressure to read anything specific. It’s just nice to have a grip on the latest and greatest, and to be able to chat about it with people more broadly…To be on-trend and in the moment.
But where do you even start? I constantly reframe the creeping anxiety around what I ‘should’ be doing, remind myself it’s a hobby and try and cycle in one of these nominate books every week. Lucky for me I have been enjoying them all so far (will update as I go:)
The Artist – an empowering and beautiful written trip to the south of France. Read this on holiday
The SafeKeep – an important look at what happens after war and where it leaves survivors. Read this on Sunday mornings when you have time to just meander.
GoodGirl – a gritty look at coming of age as an immigrant. Thought provoking and full of insight. Read this with a glass of wine on Sat evening.
The Persians – multigenerational, tragic and funny – read this on a train or long commute as it helps to get into the characters in one big go.
Hunchback – funny and unique perspective of someone living with disabilty – read on the journey home for a giggle.
For the rest of you that like to catalogue and file your to-do lists, I have outlined the major UK book awards, timelines and nominees for 2025. ENJOY – but not too responsibly. Have a little fun with it.
NOTEABLE BOOK AWARDS for the UK READER
The Booker Prize is the world’s most significant award for a single work of fiction. It has rewarded and celebrated world-class talent for over fifty years and includes writers of any nationality, written in English and published in the UK and/or Ireland
· Longlist (The Booker Dozen) announced: 26 July 2025
· Shortlist of 6 announced: 23 September
· Winner of the Booker Prize 2025 will be announced on 10 November in London
The International Booker Prize is awarded annually for a single book, translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland.
Longlist announcement: Tuesday, 25 February 2025
Shortlist announcement: Tuesday, 8 April 2025
Winner announcement and ceremony: Tuesday, 20 May 2025 at Tate Modern
Is awarded annually to a female author of any nationality for the best original full-length novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom in the preceding year.
· Longlist Announced: 4 March
· Shortlist Announced: 2 April
· Winner Announced: 12 June
This prize celebrates books by British/British resident BAME writers. Book of the Year by a Writer of Colour is an annual literary prize awarded to British or British-resident BAME writers. £1,000 is awarded to the sole winner.
· Shortlist announcement: 22 April 2025
· Winner announcement: 4 June 2025
Awards £1000 to each winner along with a unique work of art created by artists chosen for the annual Jhalak Art Residency.
The British Book Awards: also known as the Nibbies, are literary awards for the best UK writers and their works, administered by The Bookseller. Book of the Year Awards are unique in that they reward authors, illustrators, and the wider team behind a book’s journey. The three criteria are: Literary Merit, Sales Success and Publishing Excellence so this is more of an Industry award. Sections Include: Fiction, Author, Illustrator, Page Turner, Crime & Thriller, Debut Fiction, Non-Fiction Narrative, Non-Fiction Lifestyle, Children’s & AudioBooks.
· Shortlist Announced: 7 March
· Awards Ceremony: 12 May
GoodReads Book Awards: The Goodreads Choice Awards is a yearly award program run through the platform. Winners are determined by user votes on books that Goodreads has nominated or of their choosing over the past year. The final voting round collects the top 10 books from 20 different categories
· Opening Rounds: November 2025
· Winners Announced: December 2025
Pulitzer Prize: A prestigious award in the United States, recognizing excellence in journalism, literature, and music, with a specific category for fiction from American Authors. Awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States.
Book Categories for American Authors: Fiction, History, Biography, Memoir or Autobiography, Poetry & General Nonfiction.
· Winners and Nominated Finalists will be announced in May 2025.
In case you want to explore a few more prize offerings check out the below as well:
International Dublin Literary Award: Awarded annually by Dublin City Council, this prestigious prize is among the most significant literary honours worldwide, distinguished by its unique nomination process that involves libraries from cities across the globe. The award recognizes a single work of international fiction, whether originally written in English or translated into it, with a generous prize of €100,000.
Baillie Gifford Prize: A highly regarded prize for non-fiction, recognizing excellence in non-fiction writing.
Nero Book Awards: The awards are open to books published in the UK and Ireland, and at the time of entry the author must be alive and have been resident in the UK or Ireland for three years.
James Tait Black Memorial Prize: This award, judged by literature scholars and students, recognizes the best works of fiction and biography published within the previous year.
