British Academy Book Prize Guidelines

The purpose of this prize is to recognise and award a book that contributes to public understanding of world cultures. It is designed to illuminate the interconnections and divisions that shape cultural identity worldwide, and to foster more positive inter-cultural relations.

On the theme, the former Chair of Judges Patrick Wright commented:

It may sometimes be clearer to talk about economic facts and institutional arrangements, but culture shapes how people make sense of all that. In a way, it is as vital as food to defining who we are and how we may in very different ways understand and face challenges and problems. We’re not seeing culture only in artistic terms here. We have nothing against literature, film or painting, but we’re interested more broadly in how people make sense of a world in which they may feel increasingly connected, albeit by abiding injustices as well as by things held in common more equitably.

A diverse selection of books and authors have been awarded the prestigious British Academy Book Prize for Global Cultural Understanding.

Former winners of the Prize include:

• Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire by Nandini Das (2023), a rich and radical challenge to our understanding of Britain and its early empire
• When Women Kill: Four Crimes Retold by Alia Trabucco Zeran (2022), a wholly original and globally significant feminist perspective to the study of women murderers
• Waves Across the South: A New History of Revolution and Empire by Sujit Sivasundaram (2021), an exploration of the age of the British Empire through the eyes of the indigenous people of the Pacific and Indian oceans
• Imperial Intimacies: A Tale of Two Islands by Hazel V. Carby (2020), at once an intimate personal history and a sweeping summation of the violent entanglement of Jamaica and Britain.
• A Fistful of Shells: West Africa and the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution by Toby Green (2019), a ground-breaking history of West Africa.
• Border: A Journey to the Edge of Europe by Bulgarian-born writer Kapka Kassabova (2018), a close study of how borders shape people’s lives.

See our our complete list of past winners for more examples.

The Book Prize is run by the British Academy, an independent fellowship of world-leading scholars and researchers; a funding body for research, nationally and internationally; and a forum for debate and engagement.

The British Academy appoints an independent judging panel to select a shortlist and winner, from the longlist of nominations.

The British Academy Book Prize is awarded annually to an author for an outstanding and accessible book of non-fiction that will encourage the reader to grow their global, cultural knowledge.

In a blog post for the Prize, Patrick Wright said:

We’re looking for books that help us understand where we are now, that help readers grasp what is going on in the world and how people, whatever their lineage and situation, are facing contemporary reality.

We’re not at all against studies that dig deep into a problem or initiative as it’s manifested in a particular place or context, but the books that reach our shortlist tend to keep a wider perspective in mind. We like research, of course, but we understand that it doesn’t always have to be done in archives. We also like books that aren’t entirely confined to the internal arguments and, indeed, jargon of their specialism.

As the national academy for the humanities and social sciences, the British Academy champions scholarship in these disciplines and, as such, is looking for books that are thoroughly underpinned by research.

They may be written by scholars, but also journalists and independent writers. Research must be carefully balanced with accessibility – judges are looking for a book that can be read by an interested but non-specialist reader.

The British Academy is particularly keen to discover new and exciting work that pushes boundaries and shines a spotlight on the lesser-known stories of other cultures around the world.

We are keen to recognise fresh perspectives on the theme of global cultural understanding and want to ensure that the Prize feels current and relevant.

Please check the eligibility criteria for further details.

The British Academy Book Prize supports writers financially through prize money and through increased book sales, resulting from promotion.

All shortlisted authors receive £1,000 in prize money. The winner of the Prize will receive an additional £25,000.

The Prize provides a platform for discussion and debate on which to stimulate dialogue around the important global issues of the day. The shortlist and winning book are promoted through a programme of events, in addition to media and retail partnerships - extending, in many cases, over several years. Examples of events held at the British Academy's home in London and across the UK throughout the year include:

• January - Book Prize Celebration Event: a public event with the current winner of the Book Prize to mark the re-opening of nominations.
• October - Shortlist Event: a public celebration of the shortlist, involving a conversation between the authors and an eminent journalist.
• October - Winner Announcement Event: the public announcement of the winner of the Book Prize.
• Literary Festivals: the British Academy sponsors the participation of previously shortlisted authors and winners of the Book Prize at major UK literary festivals (including Cambridge Literary Festival, Cheltenham Literature Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival, Hay Festival and Oxford Literature Festival).

We are happy to answer any questions specific to your entry.

General enquiries about the Prize should be directed to the British Academy's Book Prize Team.
All media enquiries regarding the Prize should be directed to Jane Acton at Jane Acton PR.