For over 50 years, the Booker Prizes have celebrated the world’s most outstanding fiction, whether written in or translated into English.
Each month they’ll be a shining a spotlight on a different book from the Booker Library, and sharing reading guides, extracts, opinion pieces and competitions.
You can find out more about the Prize here.
We will be sharing the Booker Book of the Month picks every month for you to enjoy.
Introducing the Booker Prizes June Book of the Month: The Long Song by Andrea Levy
In 2010, Andrea Levy was shortlisted for the Booker Prize for her bittersweet novel about the last days of slavery in Jamaica.
Set during the turbulent years of slavery and the early years of freedom that followed, The Long Song is a thrilling journey through that time in the company of people who lived it. Based on the lives of the people who live and work on the Amity sugar plantation, the narrative centres around July, a slave girl with an indomitable spirit for survival.
The Booker Prizes have compiled an archive of footage of Andrea Levy talking about the book including how and why she wrote it.
There is also a reading guide for The Long Song which contains several discussion points for reading groups if you want to read and discuss the book together.
You can also join the Substack where you can share your views on the Book of the Month with other readers.
Previous Booker Prizes Book of the Month
In May, The Good Terrorist by Doris Lessing was chosen as the focus by The Booker Prizes.
In April, Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel was selected as the Book of the Month.
In March, the Booker Prizes chose Hanya Yanagihara’s second novel, A Little Life to focus on. Find out more about their first Book of the Month today.
The International Booker Prize 2023
The International Booker Prize, which highlights fiction from all five continents, translated into English, continues to build in global importance every year.
The winners’ prize purse is £50,000; £25,000 for the author and £25,000 for the translator (or divided equally between multiple translators).
Last month, the Booker Prizes announced this year’s winner, Time Shelter at a ceremony at Sky Garden in London. Download the reading guides for the shortlist.
Get involved
Share your thoughts with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and follow everything Book of the Month related using #BookerBOTM on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget you can also join the Substack to leave comments and share your views on the Book of the Month.
Keep up with all the latest news on the Booker Prize website.
