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Booker shortlist of six: James, Stuart, Strout and Harrison in; Emma Cline and Djamel White out

The 2026 Booker Prize shortlist was announced at London's Southbank Centre on September 22: M John Harrison's The End of Everything, Marlon James's The Disappearers, Luke Kennard's Black Bag, Rebecca Perry's May We Feed the King, Elizabeth Strout's The Things We Never Say and Douglas Stuart's John of John. The winner of the £50,000 prize will be named on November 9.

The Guardian noted that James (2015) and Stuart (2020) could join the four authors who have won twice, and that four of the six books are by men. Judge Jarvis Cocker said that was “quite surprising”, while Raymond Antrobus said the books “could not be replicated by artificial intelligence”. The paper called Emma Cline's absence a surprise after strong reviews for Switzy.

“This is writing at its best” — Mary Beard, chair of the judges, via NPR

Ireland's Irish Examiner led with “Irish hopes dashed”: Djamel White, the only Irish writer on the longlist, missed out. It added that Harrison, 81, could become the oldest winner. In the US, NPR took a books-first approach, with James saying the attack in his novel was based on an incident he “knew in my gut happened”, and its critic praising Strout.

How each outlet framed it

• The Guardian — gender, masculinity and the surprise omissions.
• Irish Examiner — the Irish debutant who fell short.
• NPR — the stories inside the books, in the authors' own words.

What we don't know yet: The winner. Beard said the shortlist meeting, about three hours long, was one “none of the judges is likely to forget”.