Nominees for the book awards portray a "turbulent or questionable truth"
The German Book Prize 2025 longlist has been revealed, featuring 20 captivating novels that collectively address the question "how in the world did we get to where we are today?" The longlist, selected from 229 titles published or to be published between October 2024 and September 2025, represents a wide thematic and stylistic range.
Key themes include historical panoramas, contemporary social observations, dystopias, autobiographical narratives, and fantastical elements. Styles vary from classical storytelling to experimental forms such as tapestries of speech and unruly lists, often with creative language and narrative perspectives. Some novels employ absurdity to both entertain and unsettle readers.
Notable authors on this year's longlist include Kathrin Bach, Marko Dinić, Nava Ebrahimi, Dorothee Elmiger, Kaleb Erdmann, Annett Gröschner, Dmitrij Kapitelman, Jina Khayyer, Jehona Kicaj, and more.
Kathrin Bach's debut novel, Lebensversicherung, is a tragicomic family story set in the West German provinces of the 1990s. Jina Khayyer's debut novel, Im Herzen der Katze, tells the story of the upbringing of a child of refugees from Kosovo. Jehona Kicaj's novel, ë, is a debut and has received the literature prize of the city of Hannover (HANNA).
The longlist also includes works by well-known authors such as Feridun Zaimoglu, Nava Ebrahimi, and Peter Wawerzinek. Marko Dinić's novel, Buch der Gesichter, uses language to ridicule Putin's propaganda in a comical way about the Ukraine war. Dmitrij Kapitelman's novel, Russische Spezialitäten, is about human transience after a cancer diagnosis and love and strength for healing. Jacinta Nandi's novel, Single Mom Supper Club, tackles societal issues facing single mothers with sharp, radical humor.
The novels on the longlist cover a variety of topics, from school shootings and the Ukraine war to the death of a father. They also explore themes of identity, origin, and belonging, and frequently depict family. The novels contain both dark and heavy topics, as well as humor and wit.
The German Book Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards, with a total prize money of 37,500 euros: 25,000 euros for the winner, and 2,500 euros each for the other shortlisted authors. The shortlist for the award will be released on September 16.
The longlist includes twelve female and eight male authors, with six female writers having made it onto the longlist with their debut works. The novels feature various writing styles and unique tones. Other authors, such as Kohlmeier, Wunnicke, Wawerzinek, Melle, Luescher, and Elmiger, have been nominated for the prize in the past.
The award for autobiographically influenced novels will be announced on October 13. The novels on the longlist are a testament to the power of literature in reflecting and responding to the fragile and worrying times of 2025.
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