Since it was first introduced in 2012, the Waterstones Book of the Year has become an institution, recognised by readers as a highlight of the calendar and a benchmark of true literary excellence. Nominated by our booksellers, recent winners have included Maggie O'Farrell's Hamnet, Sir Paul McCartney's The Lyrics and The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy.
In its tenth anniversary year, the prize delivers arguably its strongest shortlist yet. From a wickedly witty and inspiring novel of quiet revolution in 1960s America to the jaw-dropping true story of the man who told the world of the horrors of Auschwitz, and from a groundbreaking study of female artistic endeavour to a breathtakingly illustrated compendium of endangered species, publishing gets no better than this.
