RSL Ondaatje Prize

The annual award of £10,000 for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place.

RSL Ondaatje Prize 2020

The 2020 Prize is now closed for submissions and the winner will be announced in May. Judges are Peter Frankopan (Chair), Pascale Petit and Evie Wyld.

Winner 2019

Aida Edemariam won the 2019 RSL Ondaatje Prize with The Wife’s Tale: A Personal History (4th Estate). The annual Prize of £10,000 is awarded for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place.

I’ve always loved this prize, its generous inclusion of all forms of writing, its assertion that place is not incidental, mere background or local colour, but the thing itself. I’m beyond honoured and grateful to have been awarded it for The Wife’s Tale.

Aida Edemariam – winner, RSL Ondaatje Prize 2019

The Wife’s Tale is beautifully written, carefully researched and richly imagined, an exquisite blend of memoir, fiction, poetry and invocation. This is a book I shall constantly re-read as well as recommend to everyone I know who loves literature.

Michèle Roberts – Judge, RSL Ondaatje Prize 2019

For more information on the winner and other shortlisted authors, please see our press release.

This year’s judges are Sabrina Mahfouz, Michèle Roberts and Ian Thomson.

If you have any media enquiries, please contact Annette Brook: annette.brook@rsliterature.org or call 020 7845 4680.

Past winners