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Shehan Karunatilaka

The Booker Prize 2022

Winner
Shortlist
Longlist

Shehan Karunatilaka becomes the second Sri Lankan author to win the Booker Prize

The announcement was made by Neil MacGregor, Chair of the 2022 judges, in a ceremony at the Roundhouse, London, on October 17.

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida tells the story of a war photographer who has woken up dead in what seems to be a celestial visa office. He has ‘seven moons’ to try and solve the mystery of his death and to help unveil a cache of photos that will rock war-torn Sri Lanka. 
In addition to his two novels, Karunatilaka has worked as an advertising copywriter, as well as writing songs, screenplays and travel stories.

What the judges said


Neil MacGregor, Chair of the 2022 judges, said:

‘Any one of the six shortlisted books would have been a worthy winner. What the judges particularly admired and enjoyed in The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida was the ambition of its scope, and the hilarious audacity of its narrative techniques. This is a metaphysical thriller, an afterlife noir that dissolves the boundaries not just of different genres, but of life and death, body and spirit, east and west. It is an entirely serious philosophical romp that takes the reader to ’the world’s dark heart’ — the murderous horrors of civil war Sri Lanka. And once there, the reader also discovers the tenderness and beauty, the love and loyalty, and the pursuit of an ideal that justify every human life.’

Neil MacGregor, Chair of the Booker Prize 2022 with the six shortlisted novels

Neil MacGregor, Chair of the Booker Prize 2022 with the six shortlisted novels

© David Parry/Booker Prize Foundation

More about the winning author and book

Watch the 2022 shortlist films

Nikki Amuka-Bird reads a second extract from 'Glory' | The Booker Prize

David Harewood reads a second extract from 'The Trees' | The Booker Prize

Jarvis Cocker reads from 'Treacle Walker' by Alan Garner | The Booker Prize

Anna Friel reads from 'Oh William!' by Elizabeth Strout | The Booker Prize

Prasanna Puwanarajah reads from 'The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida' | The Booker Prize

The story so far: Maali Almeida, war photographer, gambler and closet queen, has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office

Sharon Horgan reads a second extract from 'Small Things Like These' | The Booker Prize

David Harewood reads from 'The Trees' by Percival Everett | The Booker Prize

Nikki Amuka-Bird reads from 'Glory' by NoViolet Bulawayo | The Booker Prize

The story so far: The Father of the Nation, an elderly, charismatic horse, is the ruler of the war-torn land of Jidada. Crowds gather as he arrives to address the masses

Anna Friel reads a second extract from 'Oh William!' by Elizabeth Strout | The Booker Prize

The story so far: Lucy Barton recalls the moment she feared her first husband, William, would leave her - and how she eventually left him

Jarvis Cocker reads a second extract from 'Treacle Walker' | The Booker Prize

The story so far: Joe Coppock, a solitary, partially-sighted child, explores the local countryside in a vivid dream

Sharon Horgan reads from 'Small Things Like' These by Claire Keegan | The Booker Prize

Prasanna Puwanarajah reads an extract from 'The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida' | The Booker Prize

The story so far: Maali Almeida, a war photographer, has been killed. In the afterlife, he has ‘seven moons’ to find out who murdered him, while, in the real world, local detectives must first find the rest of his body

How the Booker Prize works

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida

Winner of The Booker Prize 2022

Published by
Sort Of Books
Shehan Karunatilaka’s second novel won the Booker Prize in 2022. It is a searing, mordantly funny satire set amid the murderous mayhem of a Sri Lanka beset by civil war

The shortlist

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo
This energetic and exhilarating joyride from NoViolet Bulawayo is the story of an uprising, told by a vivid chorus of animal voices that help us see our human world more clearly
The Trees by Percival Everett
A violent history refuses to be buried in Percival Everett’s striking novel, which combines an unnerving murder mystery with a powerful condemnation of racism and police violence
Treacle Walker by Alan Garner
This latest fiction from a remarkable and enduring talent brilliantly illuminates an introspective young mind trying to make sense of the world around him
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
Claire Keegan’s tender tale of hope and quiet heroism is both a celebration of compassion and a stern rebuke of the sins committed in the name of religion
Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout
Bestselling author Elizabeth Strout returns to her beloved heroine Lucy Barton in a luminous novel about love, loss, and the family secrets that can erupt and bewilder us at any time

The longlist

The 2022 judges

Read more about the shortlist and longlist

The 2022 shortlist in numbers

87

The age of author Alan Garner, shortlisted for his book Treacle Walker

116

The number of pages of Claire Keegan’s Small Things Like These, the shortest book ever nominated in the prize’s history

3

The number of second novels on the shortlist - Glory, Small Things Like These and The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida

169

The number of books read by the 2022 judges

75

The approximate number of published works the shortlisted authors have written between them

2

The number of publishers appearing for the first time

5

The number of nationalities represented on the shortlist

17

The date in October when the winner of the Booker Prize 2022 will be announced

Watch our videos

What is it really like to be a Booker Prize judge? | The Booker Prize

Claire Keegan answers readers' questions about 'Small Things Like These' | The Booker Prize

Shehan Karunatilaka answers questions about 'The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida' | The Booker Prize

Elizabeth Strout answers readers' questions about 'Oh William!' | The Booker Prize

Percival Everett answers readers' questions about 'The Trees' | The Booker Prize

Alan Garner answers readers' questions about 'Treacle Walker' | The Booker Prize

NoViolet Bulawayo answers readers' questions about 'Glory' | The Booker Prize

The Booker Prize 2022 Shortlist Announcement | The Booker Prize