Arguments, anticipation and carefully encouraged scandals: the making of the Booker prize

Its knack for creating tension and controversy has helped it remain an energising force in publishing for more than 50 years – but how do writers, publishers and judges cope with the annual agony of the Booker?Just after 7.20pm on 20 October 1981, the …

Bernardine Evaristo on a childhood shaped by racism: ‘I was never going to give up’

My creativity can be traced back to my heritage, to the skin colour that defined how I was perceived. But, like my ancestors, I wouldn’t accept defeatWhen I won the Booker prize in 2019 for my novel Girl, Woman, Other, I became an “overnight success”, …

Legends of the fall: the 50 biggest books of autumn 2021

From new novels by Sally Rooney and Colson Whitehead to Michel Barnier’s take on Brexit, Bernardine Evaristo’s manifesto and diaries from David Sedaris – all the releases to look out for Continue reading…