I.O. Echeruo and Tahmima Anam named finalists for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction

15 May 2026

We are thrilled that two Canongate novels have been recognised by one of fiction’s most prestigious prizes: I.O. Echeruo’s The Comfort of Distant Stars and Tahmima Anam’s Uprising have both been named finalists for the 2026 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.

Each year, the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction recognises outstanding novels and collections of short stories that illuminate major social and political themes through the art of narrative. The list of 2026 finalists is characteristically impressive, and we’re delighted to see these two remarkable novels included.

I.O. Echeruo's debut The Comfort of Distant Stars moves between Nigeria and the US, through physics, philosophy and Igbo cosmology to ask, in the judges’ words, “a sharp political question: who gets to describe the way you experience the world?”

Tahmima Anam's Uprising is a drama of resistance and female power. The judges called it “dark, intense and powerful”: it is a breathtaking story of enslaved women and their children who, when a newcomer arrives on their island, find the means to resist a system of caste, abuse and gendered violence. “Uprising will leave you breathless,” they wrote.

Congratulations to I.O. and Tahmima on this huge achievement – we couldn't be more proud to publish you both.

The winner of the prize will be announced on George Orwell’s birthday, 25 June.