Brazilian Novel by Ana Paula Maia shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize
The narrative focuses on life in a remote penal colony in Brazil, where the lines between justice and cruelty become blurred.
Ana Paula Maia represents Latin America in the final of the British literary prize. Photo: Booker International.
March 31, 2026 Hour: 11:48 am
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The work ‘As Above, So Below’ is among the six selected for the prestigious award that recognizes fiction translated into English.
The prize organization confirmed this Tuesday that Brazilian author Ana Paula Maia is among the finalists for the 2026 International Booker Prize.
Her book, originally published in 2017 and translated into English by Canadian Padma Viswanathan in 2025, is the shortest text in the competition at 101 pages.
The narrative focuses on life in a remote penal colony in Brazil, where the lines between justice and cruelty blur, according to the official statement.
Maia and Viswanathan are vying for the £50,000 prize, which is split equally between the author and translator. Each finalist receives £5,000, divided equally. In this edition, Maia is the only Latin American author recognized, following the elimination of Argentinian Gabriela Cabezón Cámara from the initial shortlist of thirteen books.
The list of finalists is completed by works from Germany, Bulgaria, France, and Taiwan. Titles such as ‘The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran’ by Shida Bazyar, about an Iranian family marked by exile, and ‘The Director’ by Daniel Kehlmann, which addresses the career of a filmmaker in Nazi Germany, complete the list. Also competing are ‘The Witch’ by Marie NDiaye and ‘Taiwan Travelogue’ by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ.
Of the six finalists, five are women, as are four of the translators, representing eight nationalities across four continents and five original languages.
Natasha Brown, president of the jury, stated that the list offers a journey through the best of translated fiction, with stories that span different periods of the last century.
Brown added that, although there is hardship and loneliness, each work leaves a feeling of hope and humanity, with characters that will remain in readers’ memories.
The winner will be announced on May 19 at the Tate Modern museum in London. The prize will add to the list of authors honored in previous years, such as Han Kang and Olga Tokarczuk, who later received the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Text reads, “Brazil celebrated the graduation of 30,000 newly literate individuals at a massive event in the city of Recife, utilizing the Cuban method “Yo sí puedo” (Yes, I Can).
This celebration—part of the Literacy Campaign—brought together 7,000 new graduates and marked the culmination of a joint effort between the Landless Workers’ Movement and the Federal Government.
The initiative was implemented in agrarian reform zones and urban outskirts, where classrooms were established across several states. The ceremony also launched the Single Registry for Youth and Adult Education, a government tool designed to enhance educational policy in this sector.“
Author: HGV/JF
Source: International Brooker Prize
