Joya Chatterji has won the UK’s most prestigious history writing prize for her genre-defying study of South Asia: Shadows at Noon: The South Asian Twentieth Century.

Shadows at Noon, previously longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction 2024 and shortlisted for the Cundill History Prize 2024, is a unique academic work, interwoven with Chatterji’s own reflections on growing up in India. Her wide ranging book pushes back against standard narratives of the subcontinent that emphasise the differences between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, and instead seeks to highlight what unites these three nations and their peoples.

Praised by Chair of Judges, David Cannadine, as a book which is a “highly ambitious history of twentieth-century South Asia that defies easy categorisation, combining rigorous historical research with personal reminiscence and family anecdotes,” Chatterji receives £50,000 while each of the five shortlisted authors receives £5,000.

This unique academic work – interwoven with Chatterji’s own reflections on growing up in India — adopts a conversational writing style, and takes a thematic rather than chronological approach. Everyday experiences of food, cinema and the household are given an equal footing to discussions about politics and nationhood.

As a result, the cultural vibrancy of South Asia shines through the research, allowing readers a more nuanced understanding of the region.

First awarded by the Wolfson Foundation in 1972, the Wolfson History Prize remains a beacon of the best historical writing being produced in the UK, reflecting qualities of both readability for a general audience and excellence in writing and research. The most valuable history writing prize in the UK, the Wolfson History Prize is awarded annually, with the winner receiving £50,000, and the shortlisted authors receiving £5,000 each. Over £1.5 million has been awarded to more than 130 historians in the prize’s 52-year history. Previous winners include Simon Schama, Eric Hobsbawm, Amanda Vickery, Antony Beevor, Christopher Bayly, and Antonia Fraser.

A distinguished judging panel comprising historians Mary Beard, Richard Evans, Sudhir Hazareesingh, Carole Hillenbrand, Diarmaid MacCulloch and chair David Cannadine presided over the shortlist for 2024, which seeks to recognise books which combine excellence in research with readability for a general audience.

The judges commented on Shadows at Noon: ‘A captivating history of modern South Asia, full of fascinating insights about the lives of its peoples. Written with verve and energy, this book beautifully blends the personal and the historical.’

Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive of the Wolfson Foundation said: ‘For over fifty years, the Wolfson History Prize has celebrated exceptional history writing that is rooted in meticulous research with engaging and accessible prose. Shadows at Noon is a remarkable example of this, and Joya Chatterji captivates readers with her compelling storytelling of modern South Asian history.'

Since its publication in 2023, Shadows at Noon has received widespread praise, including:

·       "Supremely readable ... Chatterji's scholarship and enthusiasm shine through. This account of South Asia surprises, moves and illuminates” (Rana Mitter, Financial Times)

·       "Original and revealing ... this is a book which both scholars and the wider public can dip into, enjoy and learn from” (Literary Review)

·       "A provocative, pioneering work of political and social history… [an] invigorating book…nuanced and complex" (Times Literary Supplement)

·       “A cheerful history of the subcontinent, by turns erudite, eclectic, analytical, gossipy and prolix”  (History Today)

Covering multiple centuries and countries, with a focus on major turning points in the histories of the Americas, Britain, Bangladesh, Germany, India, Pakistan and South Africa, the books shortlisted for the Wolfson History Prize 2024 were:

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