Lucashenko’s “Edenglassie” on Walter Scott Prize longlist

Melissa Lucashenko’s Edenglassie (UQP, 2023) has been longlisted for the 2026 Walter Scott Prize, worth £25,000 (A$47,807).

Already the recipient of 8 prizes in Australia, Edenglassie tells the story of 2 generations of the same First Nations family, separated by hundreds of years but bound together by the legacy of colonial violence in Australia.

The longlisted titles are:

• Venetian Vespers (John Banville, Faber Fiction)
• The Two Roberts (Damian Barr, Canongate Trade)
• Eden’s Shore (Oisín Fagan, John Murray)
• Helm (Sarah Hall, Faber Fiction)
• The Pretender (Jo Harkin, Bloomsbury)
• Boundary Waters (Tristan Hughes, Parthian Books)
• The Matchbox Girl (Alice Jolly (Bloomsbury)
• Edenglassie (Melissa Lucashenko, UQP)
• Benbecula (Graeme Macrae Burnet, Polygon)
• Once The Deed Is Done (Rachel Seiffert, Virago)
• The Artist (Lucy Steeds, John Murray)
• Seascraper (Benjamin Wood, Viking).

Judges chair Katie Grant said, “The 2026 list spans all human experience and emotional intensity, with our authors crafting their work on both the small domestic canvas and a broader, more epic scale. And readers be warned: in amongst the clever, the funny, the poignant, the piquant, the moving, the intriguing and the surprising, in this year’s list you’ll find writing so visceral it will remain with you long after you have closed the book.”

The shortlist is set to be announced in April, with each shortlisted author to receive £1500 (A$2868).

More information is available on the Walter Scott Prize website.

Category: Awards Local news