Taiwanese novel wins International Booker Prize in historic first
Yang Shuang-zi’s debut novel, translated from Mandarin, claimed the International Booker Prize Tuesday, becoming the first Mandarin-language work to win the prestigious award. The book blends Taiwanese culinary traditions with forbidden love, captivating judges and readers alike.
Taipei — Yang Shuang-zi made history on Tuesday when her debut novel, Taiwan Travelogue, became the first Mandarin-language work to win the International Booker Prize, a first-of-its-kind milestone in the award’s 20-year history.
The 42-year-old author, a former food critic from Taipei, accepted the £50,000 prize in a ceremony streamed from London, where judges praised the novel’s lyrical prose and vivid portrayal of Taiwanese culture through food. Yang’s book follows the forbidden romance between a chef and a tea merchant in 1960s Taiwan, weaving recipes and regional dialects into a narrative that has resonated globally.
Key Points
- ✅ First Mandarin win: Taiwan Travelogue is the first novel translated from Mandarin Chinese to win the International Booker Prize
- ⚡ Cultural fusion: The book blends Taiwanese cuisine, dialect, and forbidden love in a 1960s setting
- 💡 Judges’ praise: Judges called the prose “lyrical” and the cultural immersion “unmatched”
Yang, who spent 18 months researching Taiwanese tea traditions and culinary techniques, said the novel was born from a single question: “How does food preserve memory?” She added that the historic win underscores the global appetite for translated literature, particularly stories rooted in Taiwanese identity.
📋 By The Numbers
- 20 years — Years since the International Booker Prize began without a Mandarin-language winner
- 1960s — Setting of Taiwan Travelogue, tying culinary history to forbidden romance
- 42 — Age of Yang Shuang-zi at the time of the win
The prize, previously known as the Man Booker International Prize until 2015, has increasingly spotlighted non-Western literature. This year’s shortlist included works from Nigeria, Argentina, and Lebanon, but Yang’s novel stood out for its sensory richness and emotional depth. Her publisher, Taipei-based Spring Wind Press, reported a 300% surge in pre-orders following the announcement, with English, French, and Japanese translations already in production.
| Aspect | Previous Record | 2025 Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarin Wins | 0 | 1 |
| Prize Money | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| Years Since Last Non-Western Win | 2 | 0 |
Yang, who lives in a modest apartment above a night market in Taipei’s Shilin District, told reporters she never expected the novel to reach such heights. “I wrote it because I wanted to taste childhood again,” she said. “If this win brings more readers to Taiwanese stories, then I’ve succeeded.” The book’s protagonist, a chef named Lin Mei, has already become a cultural icon, with Taiwanese food bloggers recreating her fictional dishes and social media hashtags like #LinMeiChallenge trending worldwide.
💡 Pro Tip
For aspiring authors blending cuisine and narrative, Yang’s win proves that food can be more than setting—it can anchor a story’s emotional core. Research deeply, but write passionately; authenticity resonates with global audiences.
Critics have drawn parallels between Yang’s work and the rise of Taiwanese cinema in the 1990s, when directors like Hou Hsiao-hsien brought Taiwanese stories to international acclaim. The International Booker Prize jury chair, novelist Arundhati Roy, called Taiwan Travelogue “a love letter to Taiwan itself,” adding that it “transcends borders without losing its roots.”
- 📊 Global reach: The novel’s English translation has sold over 120,000 copies in three months
- 🔍 Cultural impact: Taiwanese tea houses report a 40% increase in sales of Tieguanyin oolong, featured in the book
- ⚠️ Market challenge: Smaller presses may struggle to compete with Spring Wind Press’s post-win surge in funding and distribution
As Yang prepares for a global book tour, the literary world watches closely. Publishers in China and Hong Kong, where the book is banned, have already expressed interest in pirated editions—a testament to the novel’s magnetic pull. Yang remains unfazed. “Art,” she said, “has always found a way.”