The longlist for the 2025 German Book Prize was announced Tuesday morning. The jury reviewed a total of 229 titles submitted since the prize was launched, encompassing books published or scheduled for publication between October 2024 and September 16th, 2025 – the date the shortlist will be revealed – as confirmed by the German Publishers and Booksellers Association. From this pool, the jury has nominated 20 titles for this year’s award.
“Linguistic artistry, narrative approaches and the unsettling nature of the present day guided our discussions as a jury, particularly within the fragile context of 2025. Uncertainty defines our times” stated jury spokesperson Laura de Weck. She further noted that the longlist comprises 20 outstanding novels reflecting the precarious realities of our world in all its diversity. “One might worry about the future, but certainly not about the future of literature.
Among those nominated is Fiona Sironic with her debut novel, “Am Samstag gehen die Mädchen in den Wald und jagen Sachen in die Luft” (Girls Go Into the Woods on Saturday and Blow Things Up). Michael Köhlmeier is also on the list with his novel, “Die Verdorbenen” (The Corrupted). Köhlmeier has previously appeared on the longlist in 2010, 2014 and 2024 and was a shortlist contender in 2007.
The remaining nominees are: Kathrin Bach “Lebensversicherung” (Life Insurance), Marko Dinic “Buch der Gesichter” (Book of Faces), Nava Ebrahimi “Und Federn überall” (And Feathers Everywhere), Dorothee Elmiger “Die Holländerinnen” (The Dutch Women), Kaleb Erdmann “Die Ausweichschule” (The Evasion School), Annett Gröschner “Schwebende Lasten” (Floating Burdens), Dmitrij Kapitelman “Russische Spezialitäten” (Russian Specialties), Jina Khayyer “Im Herzen der Katze” (In the Heart of the Cat), Jehona Kicaj “ë”, Jonas Lüscher “Verzauberte Vorbestimmung” (Enchanted Predestination), Thomas Melle “Haus zur Sonne” (House to the Sun), Jacinta Nandi “Single Mom Supper Club”, Gesa Olkusz “Die Sprache meines Bruders” (The Language of My Brother), Lena Schätte “Das Schwarz an den Händen meines Vaters” (The Black on My Father’s Hands), Lina Schwenk “Blinde Geister” (Blind Spirits), Peter Wawerzinek “Rom sehen und nicht sterben” (Seeing Rome and Not Dying), Christine Wunnicke “Wachs” (Wax) and Feridun Zaimoglu “Sohn ohne Vater” (Son Without Father).
The jury will now select six novels from the longlist to form the shortlist, which will be announced on September 16th, 2025. The award ceremony will then take place on October 13th, 2025, at the beginning of the Frankfurt Book Fair in the Kaisersaal of the Frankfurt Römer. The winner of the German Book Prize will only be revealed at the award ceremony itself. The winner will receive a prize of 25,000 euros, while each of the five finalists will receive 2,500 euros.