Dave Chamberlain, Guam
A story of forbidden love, Taiwanese cuisine and colonial history has won the International Booker Prize, marking the first time a novel translated from Mandarin Chinese has received the prestigious literary award.
Taiwan Travelogue, written by Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi and translated into English by Taiwanese-American translator Lin King, follows two women as they travel across Taiwan in the 1930s, during the period of Japanese colonial rule.
The novel is presented as if it were the translation of a long-lost travel memoir, complete with invented footnotes. When it was first published in 2020, the framing was so convincing that some readers believed it was based on an actual historical document.
Natasha Brown, chair of the judging panel, described the book as “a captivating, slyly sophisticated novel.”
At the heart of Taiwan Travelogue is Aoyama Chizuko, a fictional Japanese writer sent on a government-backed journey around Taiwan. She is accompanied by O Chizuru, a Taiwanese interpreter, and the two women develop a romantic connection as they explore the island’s food, landscapes and culture.
Through their relationship, the novel examines themes of love, identity, colonial power, cultural exchange and historical memory.
Speaking before the winner was announced, Yang joked that researching the book’s focus on travel and food had changed her life in two clear ways: her savings decreased, while her weight increased.
The International Booker Prize is the latest honour for Taiwan Travelogue. Yang’s original Mandarin version won Taiwan’s Golden Tripod Award in 2021, one of the country’s top literary prizes. Lin King’s English translation later won the National Book Award for Translated Literature in 2024.
King said she valued the way the novel portrayed Taiwanese life under Japanese rule without reducing it only to suffering. Even in difficult times, she said, people still found humour, love, food, films, school life, small arguments and romance.
By awarding Taiwan Travelogue the prize, organisers also highlighted the importance of translation in bringing global literature to wider audiences. The £50,000 prize money, around US$67,000, will be shared equally between Yang and King.
