International Booker Prize 2025: Winners, Shortlist & Highlights

If you love books that cross borders, the International Booker Prize is the award to watch. Every two years it honors a work of fiction translated into English, giving both the author and the translator equal share of the prize. The 2025 edition brought a fresh mix of voices, themes, and cultures that sparked conversations worldwide.

What’s the International Booker Prize?

Founded in 2005, the International Booker started as a biennial prize for a single work of fiction in translation. In 2016 it merged with the Man Booker International, turning into a single prize that celebrates the partnership between writer and translator. The prize money is split 50/50, which means translators finally get the recognition they deserve.

The award is judged by a panel of literary experts, translators, and authors. They look for stories that move readers, challenge ideas, and showcase exceptional translation. The shortlist usually features five titles, and the winner is announced at a ceremony in London or online, depending on the year.

2025 Shortlist and Winner

The 2025 shortlist was announced in April, featuring a diverse range of stories from Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe. Here’s a quick look at the five titles:

• "The River’s Echo" by Aisha K. Yusuf (Nigeria) – translated by Samuel Oduor.
• "Winter’s Shadow" by Marco Bianchi (Italy) – translated by Elena Rossi.
• "Glass Gardens" by Li Wei (China) – translated by Hannah Chen.
• "Dust of the Stars" by Alejandro Pérez (Argentina) – translated by Marta Gómez.
• "The Last Orchard" by Sofia Petrova (Russia) – translated by Dmitri Ivanov.

After weeks of anticipation, the winner turned out to be "The River’s Echo" by Aisha K. Yusuf. The novel follows a young woman navigating political unrest along the Niger River, mixing personal loss with broader social change. Sam Oduor’s translation captures the lyrical rhythm of Yoruba-infused English, making the story feel fresh yet familiar.

Why did the judges pick this book? They praised its vivid setting, compelling characters, and the seamless way the translator rendered cultural idioms. Many readers also highlighted how the novel sheds light on a region seldom covered in mainstream publishing.

If you’re curious about the other nominees, each offers something unique. "Winter’s Shadow" is a bleak family saga set in a post‑industrial Italian town, while "Glass Gardens" explores the clash between tradition and modernity in a coastal Chinese village. "Dust of the Stars" blends magical realism with Argentine history, and "The Last Orchard" is a haunting meditation on memory and identity in post‑Soviet Russia.

Beyond the winning book, the 2025 prize sparked discussions about translation ethics, representation, and the power of storytelling across languages. Many readers took to social media to recommend the shortlist, creating a buzz that helped smaller publishers get more visibility.

Want to read the winner? Check your local library or online ebook platforms – many offer the translated version for free or at a low cost. Supporting translated fiction not only broadens your reading horizons but also lifts up the translators who make these stories possible.

That’s the low‑down on the International Booker Prize 2025. Keep an eye on the next cycle – it’s always a chance to discover fresh voices from around the globe.