The jury for the Prix Femina has unveiled its first selection for the 2026 edition, comprising 17 French novels and 16 foreign novels. Among the shortlisted authors are several notable figures from the fall literary season, including Yannick Haenel with * La Solitude des professeurs est infinie* , Polina Panassenko with * À voix haute* , and Thélyson Orélien with * C'était ça ou mourir*.
Anne Godard, Julia Kerninon, Clémentine Mélois, Jean-Baptiste Del Amo, Nina Bouraoui, Lucie Rico, and Véronique Ovaldé are also among the French authors selected. For foreign novels, the jury notably chose works by Laura Kasischke, Katie Kitamura, Paul Murray, Karen Russell, Sara Stridsberg, and Juan Gabriel Vásquez.
The winner will be announced on November 4th
Composed of twelve women, the jury will announce a second selection on October 6, then a third on October 23. The Prix Femina will be awarded on November 4 in the categories of French novel, foreign novel, and essay, the day after the Goncourt and Renaudot prizes are awarded.
In 2025, the Femina prize for French novel was awarded to Nathacha Appanah for * La Nuit au cœur* , published by Gallimard . The first shortlist for 2026 now opens several weeks of competition between established authors and new voices, in a particularly hotly contested literary season.
