Irish writer Paul Lynch wins 2023 Booker Prize 

The Booker Prize is an annual literary Award given to the best work of fiction written in English and published in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was first awarded in 1969 to P. H Newby for his novel Something to Answer For. This year, Irish writer Paul Lynch received the prize for his novel Prophet Song. 

The book is a dystopian novel, meaning it takes place in a society with great suffering and injustice. The novel takes place in a version of Ireland, where the government now control its citizen’s freedom. It tells the story of Elish Stack, who is trying to save her family from the unfair rule of the government. Paul Lynch spent four years writing this book and was inspired by the political problems in Syria. 

The list of 13 nominated novels was released earlier, and the winner on November 26th. Canadian writer Esi Edugyan was one of the judges for this year’s Booker Prize. She described The Prophet Song as “a triumph of emotional storytelling, bracing and brave”. Paul Lynch became the fifth Irish author to win this important award and was given £ 50,000. He received the trophy from last year’s winner, Shehan Karunatilaka, who won for his novel The Seven Moons of Mali Almeida.