To celebrate our Monthly Spotlight for May, Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym, we’re offering you the chance to win a copy of the book and a limited-edition Booker Prize tote bag.  

Quartet in Autumn follows four ageing colleagues as they approach retirement. Edwin, Norman, Letty and Marcia’s chief point of contact, at least until the two women retire, is that they work in the same office. Lovingly and poignantly, satirically in the gentlest but sharpest way, Pym conducts us through their small lives and the facades they erect to defend themselves against the outside world. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1977, Pym imbues an obstinate optimism in her characters, allowing them, in their different ways, to win through to a kind of hope. 

The Booker Prize tote bags feature illustrations by artist Iris de Moüy and aren’t available to buy.

To be in with a chance of winning, simply enter your details below by 12:00 BST on Monday, 1 June 2026.

This competition is open to readers anywhere in the world.

Terms and conditions

This competition is a free draw, with only one entry allowed per person, and we reserve the right to disqualify any entries where we suspect one person has used a number of different email addresses. Use or attempted use of any automated or other non-manual entry methods is prohibited.  

The draw is governed by our general rules for competitions, available here, but the following specifics also apply (and take precedence should there be any contradiction or ambiguity):  

• There will be five winners, selected at random from entries received by 12:00 BST on Monday, 1 June 2026. Entries received after this time will not be eligible. 
• The winner will receive one copy of (in its current UK edition).
• Entrants must be 18 or over, and we reserve the right to ask for proof of age at any point in the competition; prize-winners should be aware of the adult themes of the book, particularly if sharing it with other readers. 
• The competition is open to that resident in or outside the UK subject to the proviso that an entry is not eligible if it is from a resident in a country or jurisdiction where this free draw may breach any local law or regulation.    
• Winners will be notified by email no later than 12:00 BST Monday, 8 June 2026 and must promptly provide a fully operative postal address for delivery of their prize. If we have not received this within 7 days of us notifying a winner, we will have no obligation to deliver the prize and at our sole discretion, we may select a further winner to receive the prize concerned or simply decide not to give it.   
• We may in due course and at our sole discretion publicise the names of the winners and their location (in general terms, not specific addresses) on our website and/or social media channels and by entering the competition an entrant agrees to this publicity should they be a prize-winner. 
• We can only undertake to do what is reasonable in all the circumstances to deliver the prize to a location outside the UK. 
• Bearing in mind, among other things, the value of the prize itself in relation to cost of delivery, we reserve the right (and this is determined at our sole discretion) to ask a winner to provide an alternative address for delivery to a person/location where the cost is proportionate. 
• Winners are responsible for any taxes or duties they may have to pay in order to take receipt of their prize.
• We cannot ship to PO Box addresses; winners are required to provide a bricks-and-mortar/physical address for prize(s) to be dispatched to. 
• While we will aim to despatch prizes as soon as possible after the competition has closed, no responsibility can be accepted for entries delayed or lost.
• We are not responsible for any damage to the prize in the course of delivery; while we will consider a request for a replacement (if available) if the prize arrives in a seriously damaged state, this is solely in our discretion depending on the particular circumstances. 
• These terms and conditions are governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England & Wales, and the courts of England & Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction in determining any question or issue in relation to them.