British writer Michael John Harrison has won the 2026 Booker Prize for his novel The End of Everything ("The End of Everything"). At 81, he became the oldest winner in the award’s history and the first laureate to come from the science fiction genre, UNN writes.
Details
The novel tells the story of the near future, in which humanity has survived a mysterious catastrophe that led to the collapse of the social order. The author deliberately does not explain all the circumstances of the catastrophe, so that readers experience the same bewilderment as the characters in the work.
The previous age record belonged to Canadian writer Margaret Atwood, who received the Booker Prize in 2019 at the age of 79.
What is known about the writer
Michael John Harrison, also known as M. John Harrison, began his literary career in the 1960s with publications in the science fiction magazine New Worlds, where he later worked as a literary editor.
Over the course of his career, the writer has published 13 novels. Among his best-known works are the Viriconium series ("Viriconium"), as well as the novels Light ("Light") and Nova Swing ("Nova Swing").
Although Harrison dislikes genre classifications of his work, he is regarded as one of the most influential science fiction authors.
He is a truly original thinker, a writer who has shaped his genre and takes ideas seriously
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