Mary Renault

Mary Renault was born Eileen Mary Challans, in London. She was best known for her historical novels set in ancient Greece.

In addition to fictional portrayals of Theseus, Socrates and Plato she wrote a non-fiction biography of Alexander the Great, The Nature of Alexander (1975). Fire of Heaven, her novel about Alexander the Great, was longlisted for the 2010 Booker Prize.

All nominated books

Fire from Heaven

At 20, when his reign began, Alexander the Great was already a seasoned soldier and a complex man. Mary Renault explores the years that shaped him.

Hilary Mantel Q&A

The two-time Booker Prize winner sat down with us on being longlisted for The Mirror & the Light.

Historical Fiction books nominated for the Booker Prize

Historical Fiction - Find out more about the works and authors in the Booker Library that explore topics and tell stories from within historical settings

The Long Song by Andrea Levy, in the author’s own words

Andrea Levy, the author of The Long Song, died in 2019. Here we reproduce some of her comments on the book, including how and why she wrote it