Revealing the 2021 Women’s Prize longlist

We’re very excited to announce this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist. This year’s sixteen longlisted books cover both new and well-established writers and a range of genres.

This year’s longlist honours both new and well-established writers and a range of genres and themes – family (twins and siblings, mother-daughter relationships); motherhood; rural poverty and isolation; addiction; identity and belonging; race and class; grief and happiness; coming-of-age and later life. The novels span a range of different global settings, from South London to Deep South; Ghana, Hong Kong, Barbados, Brooklyn and a fantasy realm.

Chair of judges and novelist Bernardine Evaristo, says: ‘We read so many brilliant novels for this year’s prize and had an energetic judging session where we discussed our passions, opinions and preferences. Sadly, we had to let some very deserving books go but we’re confident that we have chosen sixteen standout novels that represent a truly wide and varied range of fiction by women that reflects multiple perspectives, narrative styles and preoccupations. These novels fascinated, moved, inspired and challenged us and we’re excited at announcing their inclusion on the Women’s Prize longlist.’

Bernardine is joined on the judging panel by podcaster, author and journalist, Elizabeth Day; TV and radio presenter, journalist and writer, Vick Hope; print columnist and writer, Nesrine Malik; and news presenter and broadcaster, Sarah-Jane Mee.

The sixteen longlisted books are as follows:

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• Because of You by Dawn French
• Burnt Sugar by Avni Doshi
• Consent by Annabel Lyon
• Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
• Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan
• How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones
• Luster by Raven Leilani
• No One is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
• Nothing But Blue Sky by Kathleen MacMahon
• Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
• Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers
• Summer by Ali Smith
• The Golden Rule by Amanda Craig
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
• Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
• Unsettled Ground by Claire Fuller

The judging panel will now whittle these 16 books down to a shortlist of just 6 novels, announced on April 28th. The 26th winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction will be announced on Wednesday 8th September.

You can watch the announcement with all five of our wonderful judges and find out about the longlisted books below:

Make sure you’re signed up to the Women’s Prize for Fiction newsletter for a chance to win all sixteen longlisted books.

And join in the conversation @WomensPrize about this year’s brilliant novels.