We are delighted to share the news that Summer Hours by Alessandra Thom has been longlisted for the Polari First Book Award 2026.
Summer Hours is the remarkable debut novel from Alessandra Thom set across a hot Edinburgh summer, in which three women become entangled in a knot of friendship and infatuation. The Scotsman described the novel by saying ‘Thom’s Tardis-like debut makes an outsize impression’, while the Daily Mail called it ‘an absorbing read about love, compromise, and deceit’.
The Polari First Book Prize was founded in 2011 and is awarded annually to a debut book that explores the LGBTQ+ experience, and has previously been won by writers including Kirsty Logan, Amrou Al-Kadhi, Diriye Osman, Mohsin Zaidi, Adam Zmith and Nicola Dinan.
The Polari First Book Prize 2026 is sponsored by Hastings Crime Writing Festival. The winner receives £1000.
Judges for the Polari First Book Prize 2026 are: poet Alice Denny, poet and ‘Bard of Exeter’ Casey Garfield, literary agent David H Headley, and writer Rachel Holmes.
Poet Casey Garfield said, “It’s been an absolute pleasure being part of the judging panel. There are books on this list it was immediately clear would be universally championed.”
Writer Rachel Holmes said, “This year’s long list is an intriguingly eclectic and nuanced crop. I particularly love the broad sweep across all genres. It’s bracing, exciting and confident.”
Poet Alice Denny said, “Reading the submissions for this year’s Polari First Book Prize has been an intensely enjoyable, testing and truly humbling experience – such are the astounding talents of such varied writers, treating the reader to delightful storytelling, dizzying plots, passages of sublime poetic imagery.”
A huge congratulations to Alessandra – we are keeping our fingers crossed for the shortlist announcement next month.
The Polari First Book Prize 2026 Longlist
The Ayatollah’s Gaze by Majid Parsa – Neem Tree Press
What A Girl Wants by Roxy Bourdillon – Bluebird
Where You Go, I Will Go by Christina Fonthes – Tinder Press
Altar by Desree – Bad Betty Press
Summer Hours by Alessandra Thom – Polygon
Pig by Matilde Pratesi – Corsair
Prairie Oyster by Sophie Robinson – Fleet
Crowd Work by Sam Furlong – Macha Press
Smoke and Silk by Fiona Keating – Headline
A Family Matter by Claire Lynch – Vintage
I’m Fine by Richard Hall – Eye Books
Miss Veal and Miss Ham by Vikki Heywood – Muswell Press
