The Costa Book Awards honour some of the most outstanding books of the year written by authors based in the UK and Ireland. There are five categories – First Novel, Novel, Biography, Poetry and Children’s Book – with one of the five winners chosen as Book of the Year.

Dominic Paul, Managing Director of Costa said: ‘There’s genuinely something for everyone in our shortlists this year: books which will make you laugh and books which will make you cry; books which will make you think; books which you’ll read late into the night; and, most of all, books which you’ll want to recommend and pass on to others.’

Here are the shortlistees in each category.

Best Novel

• The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
• The Italian Teacher by Tom Rachman
• Normal People by Sally Rooney
• From a Low and Quiet Sea by Donal Ryan

Best First novel

• Pieces of Me by Natalie Hart
• An Unremarkable Body by Elisa Lodato
• The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
• Meet Me at the Museum by Anne Youngson

Best Biography

• To Throw Away Unopened by Viv Albertine
• The Cut Out Girl by Bart van Es
• The Salt Path by Raynor Winn
• The Life and Rhymes of Benjamin Zephaniah by Benjamin Zephaniah

Best Poetry

• Us by Zaffar Kunial
• Assurances by J.O. Morgan
• Soho by Richard Scott
• Three Poems by Hannah Sullivan

Best Children’s books

• The Colour of the Sun by David Almond
• Bone Talk by Candy Gourlay
• Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen
• The Skylarks’ War by Hilary McKay

The category winners will be announced 7 January 2019, with the Book of the Year winner to be revealed on 29 January 2019. Read more about the Costa Book Awards here.