Prophet Song by Paul Lynch has been named the winner of the Booker Prize 2023.

Booker Prize: The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Man Booker Prize until 2019, is one of the most prestigious and leading literary awards in the English-speaking world. It is awarded each year for the best original novel written in the English language and published in the UK or Ireland. Prophet Song by Paul Lynch has been named the winner of the Booker Prize 2023. The author received £50,000 and was presented with his trophy by Shehan Karunatilaka, the 2022 winner, at a ceremony held at Old Billingsgate, London on Sunday, November 26, 2023.

‘Prophet Song’ is set in the near future centres on Eilish Stack, a scientist and mother of four, whose trade unionist husband is taken by the security forces, an early sign of growing authoritarian rule that eventually sees Ireland in the midst of a civil war, according to New York Times.

We’re delighted to announce that the winner of the #BookerPrize2023 is Prophet Song by Paul Lynch.

Huge congratulations to @paullynchwriter. 🎉

Discover the book: pic.twitter.com/Z0Ab0eH3LU

— The Booker Prizes (@TheBookerPrizes) November 26, 2023

Irish Author Paul Lynch: Quick Facts About 2023 Booker Prize Winner

1. ​Paul Lynch was born in Limerick in 1977, grew up in Co Donegal, and lives in Dublin.
2. Lynch, 46, a former movie critic, made his literary debut in 2013 with ‘Red Sky in Morning’, set in the 19th century, about an Irishman who flees to America after killing a man.
3. His other novels include ‘Beyond the Sea’, about two men stranded offshore, and ‘Grace’, set during an Irish famine.
4. Esi Edugyan, a novelist and the chair of this year’s judging panel, said that “Prophet Song” resonated with contemporary crises including the Israel-Hamas war, but that the novel had won solely on its literary merits. “This is a triumph of emotional storytelling, bracing and brave,” Edugyan said in a news conference before the announcement, news agency ANI reported. However, the judges weren’t unanimous in their decision, even after six hours of debate, Edugyan said. Still, she added, the panel felt that ‘Prophet Song’ was a worthy winner that “captures the social and political anxieties of our current moment”.”There was a different way that things could have gone,” Edugyan said. Ultimately, she added, the judges all “felt that this was the book that we wanted to present to the world — that this was truly a masterful work of fiction.”
5. ‘Prophet Song’, which Grove Atlantic will publish in North America on December 5, beat five other shortlisted titles including Paul Murray’s ‘The Bee Sting’, Chetna Maroo’s ‘Western Lane’ and Paul Harding’s ‘This Other Eden’, New York Times reported.

 2023 Booker Prize: Shortlisted Novels

The other shortlisted novels were Jonathan Escoffery’s ‘If I Survive You’, and Sarah Bernstein’s ‘Study for Obedience’.

Shortlist:

• Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein (Granta Books)
• If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery (4th Estate)
• This Other Eden by Paul Harding (Hutchinson Heinemann)
• Western Lane by Chetna Maroo (Picador)
• The Bee Sting by Paul Murray (Hamish Hamilton)

Longlist:

• A Spell of Good Things by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀ (Canongate)
• Old God’s Time by Sebastian Barry (Faber & Faber)
• Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein (Granta Books)
• If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery (4th Estate)
• How to Build a Boat by Elaine Feeney (Harvill Secker)
• This Other Eden by Paul Harding (Hutchinson Heinemann)
• Pearl by Siân Hughes (The Indigo Press)
• All the Little Bird-Hearts by Viktoria Lloyd-Barlow (Tinder Press)
• Prophet Song by Paul Lynch (Oneworld)
• In Ascension by Martin MacInnes (Atlantic Books)
• Western Lane by Chetna Maroo (Picador)
• The Bee Sting by Paul Murray (Hamish Hamilton)
• The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng (Canongate)

Judges:

• Esi Edugyan (Chair), Adjoa Andoh, Mary Jean Chan, James Shapiro, Robert Webb

What is Prophet Song about?

As per the official website of the Booker Prize, Prophet Song is an exhilarating, propulsive, and confrontational portrait of a country – and an ordinary family – on the brink of catastrophe. On a dark, wet evening in Dublin, scientist and mother-of-four Eilish Stack answers her front door to find the GNSB on her doorstep. Two officers from Ireland’s newly formed secret police want to speak with her husband….Things are falling apart. Ireland is in the grip of a government that is taking a turn towards tyranny. And as the blood-dimmed tide is loosed, Eilish finds herself caught within the nightmare logic of a collapsing society – assailed by unpredictable forces beyond her control and forced to do whatever it takes to keep her family together.

India.com wishes  Paul Lynch a big and heartfelt congratulations on his remarkable achievement! Winning the 2023 Booker Prize is a testament to your exceptional talent and hard work. Your dedication to your craft is inspiring, and your success is truly well-deserved.