Six books. Five languages. Four continents. Two debuts. And one novel that was first published 30 years ago and has only now been translated into English. The International Booker Prize 2026 shortlist, announced on 31 March, features stories set in 1930s Japanese-controlled Taiwan, Nazi-era Austria, post-revolution Iran, a Brazilian prison colony, suburban France, and the Albanian Alps. Five of the six authors are women. The winner will be announced on 19 May at the Tate Modern in London. The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar, translated from German by Ruth Martin, is a debut novel that follows one...