British author Samantha Harvey has won the 2024 Booker Prize for her novel Orbital. Remarkably, it is the first book set in space to win the prize. Harvey is also the first woman to win the award since 2019.
About Orbital, the 2024 Booker Prize Winner
Orbital looks at our world from a very different viewpoint. Specifically, it follows a team of astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Moreover, it is the biggest-selling book on the UK shortlist. In fact, up to the eve of the award, it had outsold the past three Booker winners combined.
The novel covers a single day in orbit. During that day, the six crew members see sixteen sunrises and sixteen sunsets. Through their eyes, readers reflect on the beauty and fragility of Earth. As a result, critics have praised its lyrical and thoughtful style.
The Award Ceremony
The organisers announced the winner at a ceremony at Old Billingsgate in London. As the winner, Harvey takes home a prize of £50,000.
Key Facts About the Booker Prize
- Started: The Booker Prize began in 1969.
- Eligibility: It honours the best novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. Since 2014, writers of any nationality can compete.
- Prize money: The winner receives £50,000.
- Related award: Separately, the International Booker Prize honours fiction translated into English. For example, Geetanjali Shree’s Tomb of Sand won it in 2022. It was the first Hindi novel to do so.
Why the 2024 Booker Prize Matters for Exams
Notably, awards and honours are a regular part of the current affairs section in UKPSC and UPSC prelims. Therefore, remember the winner, the book and its unique theme. For official details, visit the Booker Prizes website. You may also read about another global achiever in our note on R. Vaishali’s FIDE win.
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