Palestinian author Ibtisam Azem’s The Book of Disappearance longlisted for International Booker Prize
The longlist for the International Booker Prize 2025, the world’s most prestigious award for translated fiction, has been announced and it features Palestinian author Ibtisam Azem’s The Book of Disappearance, translated by Sinan Antoon. Azem’s novel is among 13 works selected by the judging panel.
The 2025 panel is chaired by bestselling Booker Prize-longlisted author Max Porter, accompanied by poet and filmmaker Caleb Femi, writer and Wasafiri Publishing Director Sana Goyal, author and translator Anton Hur, and musician Beth Orton.
The judges selected the longlist from 154 submitted works translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland between May 1 last year and April 30 this year.
This year’s selection of books — 11 novels and two short story collections — features first-time nominees across the board and a record number of independent publishers.
The longlist showcases translations from 10 original languages, including, for the first time, Kannada and Romanian.
Among the selected books, 12 of 13 are published by independent presses, the highest in the prize’s history. The themes of these books range from political turmoil and existential philosophy to intimate family struggles and surreal explorations of alternate realities.
Notable longlisted works
One of the most notable entries is The Book of Disappearance. It presents a compelling and unsettling narrative — one that imagines a world where Palestinians suddenly vanish, leaving behind only traces of their existence and a thought-provoking mystery. The novel, translated from Arabic by Iraqi writer and translator Antoon, is an exploration of identity, history, and the weight of absence. Writing for The Guardian, literary critic John Self has described it as a “rich, potent novel” that resonates with contemporary global tensions.
Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu, translated by Sean Cotter, marks the first time a Romanian author has been longlisted. Set in communist Bucharest in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the novel is “an endlessly strange study of existence and the longing to escape it,” per The New York Times.
Another landmark entry is Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, translated by Deepa Bhasthi, the first Kannada-language book to be featured in the prize’s history.
Hiromi Kawakami, known for Strange Weather in Tokyo, is also on the list with Under the Eye of the Big Bird, a novel-in-stories set in a future where humans are nearing extinction.
Eurotrash by Christian Kracht, translated from German by Daniel Bowles, is also on the list and it follows a middle-aged writer on a darkly comic road trip through Switzerland with his ailing mother.
On a Woman’s Madness by Astrid Roemer, translated by Lucy Scott, breaks a record for the longest gap between original publication and longlisting — first published in Dutch 43 years ago, it is considered a classic of queer literature.
Other books on the longlist
- On the Calculation of Volume I by Solvej Balle, translated by Barbara J Haveland
- There’s a Monster Behind the Door by Gaëlle Bélem, translated by Karen Fleetwood and Laëtitia Saint-Loubert
- Reservoir Bitches by Dahlia de la Cerda, translated by Julia Sanches and Heather Cleary
- Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix, translated by Helen Stevenson
- Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa, translated by Polly Barton
- Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico, translated by Sophie Hughes (marking her record-breaking fifth nomination)
- A Leopard-Skin Hat by Anne Serre, translated by Mark Hutchinson
Porter praised the list, highlighting its depth and emotional power. “These books bring us into the agony of family, workplace or nation-state politics, the near-spiritual secrecy of friendship, the inner architecture of erotic feeling, the banality of capitalism and the agitations of faith,” he said.
Notably absent from the list is Han Kang, the 2016 International Booker Prize winner, whose latest novel We Do Not Part was eligible but did not make the cut. Kang previously won for The Vegetarian, which was translated by Deborah Smith.
What’s next?
The shortlist of six books will be revealed on April 8, followed by the announcement of the winner at a ceremony at London’s Tate Modern on May 20. The £50,000 prize will be equally divided between the winning author and their translator.
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