I’ve been working on a list of novels eligible for this year’s Women’s Prize since … this time last year. Unusual for me to be so prepared! It shows how invested I’ve become in this prize over the years. For instance, last year my book club was part of an official shadowing scheme, which was great fun.

We’re now less than a month out from the longlist, which will be announced on 7 March. Like last year, I’ve separated my predictions from a wish list; two titles overlap. Here’s a reminder of the parameters, taken from the website:

“Any woman writing in English – whatever her nationality, country of residence, age or subject matter – is eligible. Novels must be published in the United Kingdom between 1 April in the year the Prize calls for entries, and 31 March the following year, when the Prize is announced. … The Prize only accepts novels entered by publishers, who may each submit a maximum of two titles per imprint, depending on size, and one title for imprints with a list of ten fiction titles or fewer published in a year. Previously shortlisted and winning authors are given a ‘free pass’.”

This year I dutifully kept tabs on publisher quotas as I compiled my lists. I also attempted to bear in mind the interests of this year’s judges (also from the website): “Chair of Judges, author and journalist Louise Minchin, is joined by award-winning novelist Rachel Joyce; author, journalist and podcaster Irenosen Okojie; bestselling author and journalist Bella Mackie and MP for Hampstead and Kilburn Tulip Siddiq.”

 

Predictions

A Spell of Good Things, Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

Birnam Wood, Eleanor Catton

Joan, Katherine J. Chen

Maame, Jessica George

Really Good, Actually, Monica Heisey

Trespasses, Louise Kennedy

The Night Ship, Jess Kidd (my review)

Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver (my review)

Our Missing Hearts, Celeste Ng (my review)

The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O’Farrell

I’m a Fan, Sheena Patel

Elektra, Jennifer Saint

Best of Friends, Kamila Shamsie

River Sing Me Home, Eleanor Shearer

Lucy by the Sea, Elizabeth Strout – currently reading

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin (my review)

 

Wish List

How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water, Angie Cruz

The Weather Woman, Sally Gardner (my review)

Maame, Jessica George

The Great Reclamation, Rachel Heng

Bad Cree, Jessica Johns

I Have Some Questions for You, Rebecca Makkai – currently reading

Sea of Tranquillity, Emily St. John Mandel (my review)

The Hero of This Book, Elizabeth McCracken (my review)

Nightcrawling, Leila Mottley (my review)

We All Want Impossible Things, Catherine Newman – currently reading

Everything the Light Touches, Janice Pariat (my review)

Camp Zero, Michelle Min Sterling – review pending for Shelf Awareness

Briefly, A Delicious Life, Nell Stevens (my review)

This Time Tomorrow, Emma Straub (my review)

Fight Night, Miriam Toews – currently reading

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin (my review)

Of course, even if I’m lucky, I’ll still only get a few right across these two lists, and I’ll be kicking myself over the ones I considered but didn’t include, and marvelling at all the ones I’ve never heard of…

What would you like to see on the longlist?

 

~BREAKING NEWS: There are plans afoot to start a Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction. Now seeking funding to start in 2024. More details here.~

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Appendix

(A further 99 eligible novels that were on my radar but didn’t make the cut:)

 

Hester, Laurie Lico Albanese

Rose and the Burma Sky, Rosanna Amaka

Milk Teeth, Jessica Andrews

Clara & Olivia, Lucy Ashe

Wet Paint, Chloë Ashby

Shrines of Gaiety, Kate Atkinson

Honey & Spice, Bolu Babalola

Hell Bent, Leigh Bardugo

Either/Or, Elif Batuman

Girls They Write Songs About, Carlene Bauer

seven steeples, Sara Baume

The Witches of Vardo, Anya Bergman

Shadow Girls, Carol Birch

Permission, Jo Bloom

Horse, Geraldine Brooks

Glory, NoViolet Bulawayo

Mother’s Day, Abigail Burdess

Instructions for the Working Day, Joanna Campbell

People Person, Candice Carty-Williams

Disorientation, Elaine Hsieh Chou

The Book of Eve, Meg Clothier

Cult Classic, Sloane Crosley

The Things We Do to Our Friends, Heather Darwent

The Bewitching, Jill Dawson

Common Decency, Susannah Dickey

Theatre of Marvels, L.M. Dillsworth

Haven, Emma Donoghue

History Keeps Me Awake at Night, Christy Edwall

The Candy House, Jennifer Egan

Dazzling, Chikodili Emelumadu

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty, Akwaeke Emezi

there are more things, Yara Rodrigues Fowler

Factory Girls, Michelle Gallen

Lessons in Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus

The Illuminated, Anindita Ghose

Your Driver Is Waiting, Priya Guns

The Rabbit Hutch, Tess Gunty

The Dance Tree, Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Weyward, Emilia Hart

Other People Manage, Ellen Hawley

Stone Blind, Natalie Haynes

The Cloisters, Katy Hays

Motherthing, Ainslie Hogarth

The Unfolding, A.M. Homes

The White Rock, Anna Hope

They’re Going to Love You, Meg Howrey

Housebreaking, Colleen Hubbard

Vladimir, Julia May Jonas

This Is Gonna End in Tears, Liza Klaussmann

The Applicant, Nazli Koca

Babel, R.F. Kuang

Yerba Buena, Nina Lacour

The Swimmers, Chloe Lane

The Book of Goose, Yiyun Li

Amazing Grace Adams, Fran Littlewood

All the Little Bird Hearts, Viktoria Lloyd-Barlow

Now She Is Witch, Kirsty Logan

The Chosen, Elizabeth Lowry

The Home Scar, Kathleen MacMahon

Very Cold People, Sarah Manguso

All This Could Be Different, Sarah Thankam Mathews

Becky, Sarah May

The Dog of the North, Elizabeth McKenzie

Dinosaurs, Lydia Millet

Young Women, Jessica Moor

The Garnett Girls, Georgina Moore

Black Butterflies, Priscilla Morris

Lapvona, Ottessa Moshfegh

Someone Else’s Shoes, Jojo Moyes

The Men, Sandra Newman

True Biz, Sara Nović

Babysitter, Joyce Carol Oates

Tomorrow I Become a Woman, Aiwanose Odafen

Things They Lost, Okwiri Oduor

The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts, Soraya Palmer

The Things that We Lost, Jyoti Patel

Still Water, Rebecca Pert

Stargazer, Laurie Petrou

Ruth & Pen, Emilie Pine

Delphi, Clare Pollard

The Whalebone Theatre, Joanna Quinn

The Poet, Louisa Reid

Carrie Soto Is Back, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Kick the Latch, Kathryn Scanlan

Blue Hour, Sarah Schmidt

After Sappho, Selby Wynn Schwartz

Signal Fires, Dani Shapiro

A Dangerous Business, Jane Smiley

Companion Piece, Ali Smith

Memphis, Tara M. Stringfellow

Flight, Lynn Steger Strong

Brutes, Dizz Tate

Madwoman, Louisa Treger

I Laugh Me Broken, Bridget van der Zijpp

I’m Sorry You Feel That Way, Rebecca Wait

The Schoolhouse, Sophie Ward

Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm, Laura Warrell

The Odyssey, Lara Williams

A Complicated Matter, Anne Youngson

Avalon, Nell Zink