Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction 2016

Calling all reading groups

Now in its 21st year, the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in writing by women, in English, from around the world. It is the UK’s only annual book award for fiction written by a woman. This year’s longlist honours both new and well-established writers – over half the titles are first novels. Seven nationalities are represented including the first Zimbabwean writer to be longlisted for the Prize.

The longlist

• A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson (Doubleday)
• Rush Oh! by Shirley Barrett (Virago)
• Ruby by Cynthia Bond (Two Roads)
• The Secret Chord by Geraldine Brooks (Little, Brown)
• The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (Hodder & Stoughton)
• A Dictionary of Mutual Understanding by Jackie Copleton (Hutchinson)
• Whispers Through a Megaphone by Rachel Elliott (One, imprint of Pushkin Press)
• The Green Road by Anne Enright (Jonathan Cape)
• The Book of Memory by Petina Gappah (Faber & Faber)
• Gorsky by Vesna Goldsworthy (Chatto & Windus)
• The Anatomist’s Dream by Clio Gray (Myrmidon)
• At Hawthorn Time by Melissa Harrison (Bloomsbury)
• Pleasantville by Attica Locke (Serpent’s Tail)
• The Glorious Heresies by Lisa McInerney (John Murray)
• The Portable Veblen by Elizabeth McKenzie (Fourth Estate)
• Girl at War by Sara Nović (Little, Brown)
• The House at the Edge of the World by Julia Rochester (Viking)
• The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild (Bloomsbury)
• My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout (Viking)
• A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (Picador)

Reading Group shadowing opportunities

Reading groups are invited to pitch for their opportunity to shadow the Prize this year. 12 lucky groups will be selected by the Prize and will receive an exclusive package containing 10 copies of one of the shortlisted books, bookmarks, bunting, a full-sized bottle of Baileys and a recipe inspiration. In exchange they will write a description and post an image of their group and take part in the #BaileysPrize conversations across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram joining in discussions about the books and sending in reviews and pictures. Complete this short questionnaire for your chance to take part.

Key Prize dates

11 April: Shortlist announcement
7 June: Annual shortlist readings at Cadogan Hall, London, with the six shortlisted authors reading from and discussing their work. Buy tickets here.
8 June: The winner will be announced at a prestigious awards ceremony to be held in The Clore Ballroom at the Royal Festival Hall. She will receive a cheque for £30,000 and a limited edition bronze figurine known as a ‘Bessie’, created and donated by the artist Grizel Niven. Both are anonymously endowed.

Get involved

What do you think of the 2016 longlisted titles? Which have you read and do you think there are any books missing? Add your comments below.

Share your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter using #BaileysPrize. You can also visit the Prize website and follow them on Instagram.

To celebrate the announcement of this year’s Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist, there are two chances to win all 20 longlisted books, plus a bottle of Baileys! Simply like the Prize Facebook page or retweet the Prize to win.