Barbara Kingsolver has won the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction with her tenth novel Demon Copperhead.

At a glorious award ceremony at Bedford Square Gardens in Central London, hosted by Women’s Prizes Founder Director Kate Mosse, we saw the Chair of Judges Louise Minchin present the author with the ‘Bessie’, a limited-edition bronze figurine by Grizel Niven. Kingsolver is also the recipient of this year's £30,000 prize, endowed by an anonymous donor.

Barbara Kingsolver is the first double winner of the Prize having previously won in 2010 with The Lacuna.

Demon Copperhead is a reimagining of Dickens’ David Copperfield for modern times. Set in the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia it tells the story of the relentless struggles and triumphs of a young boy born into poverty as he navigates foster care, labour exploitation, addition, love and loss, while grappling with his invisibility in a culture that neglects rural communities.

Louise Minchin said “Barbara Kingsolver has written a towering, deeply powerful and significant book. In a year of outstanding fiction by women, we made a unanimous decision on Demon Copperhead as our winner: Brilliant and visceral, it is storytelling by an author at the top of her game. We were all deeply moved by Demon, his gentle optimism, resilience and determination despite everything being set against him.”

The 2023 judging panel chaired by Louise Minchin also included Rachel Joyce, award-winning novelist and playwright; Bella Mackie, writer and journalist; Irenosen Okojie, award-winning author; and Tulip Siddiq, Member of Parliament for Hampstead and Kilburn and Shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

About the Prize

The Women’s Prize for Fiction is described as the greatest international celebration of women’s creativity masterminded by the registered charity the Women’s Prize Trust and honours outstanding, ambitious, original fiction written in English by women from anywhere in the world.

Set up in 1996 to celebrate and promote fiction by women to the widest range of readers possible, the Women’s Prize for Fiction is awarded for the best full-length novel of the year written by a woman and published in the UK between April and March the following year. Any woman writing in English, whatever her nationality, country of residence, age or subject matter, is eligible.

The 2023 Shortlist

Fire Rush by Jacqueline Crooks

Trespasses by Louise Kennedy

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

Pod by Laline Paull

The Women's Prize for Fiction Trust is a UK charity which champions equity for women in the world of books. To sit alongside the Women's Prize for Fiction they have also recently announced the Women's Prize for Non-Fiction, which will be awarded for the first time in 2024. 

What do you think of this year's winner? Have you read the shortlist yet? Comment and let us know what you think!

If you'd like to read more about the Prize, check out our recent Q&A with Louise Minchin.

For more information about the Women's Prize head to womensprizeforfiction.co.uk.

@WomensPrize

#WomensPrize