Orwell Prize 2023: Political Writing

Peter Apps delivers a devastating, meticulously researched account of the Grenfell Tower fire and the systemic failures that made it inevitable. Drawing on years of reporting, public inquiry documents, and survivor testimony, he exposes how deregulation, cost-cutting, and political negligence created the conditions for one of Britain’s worst modern tragedies. Apps writes with clarity and moral urgency, refusing to let the story be reduced to an accident or anomaly. He traces responsibility through decades of decisions, demonstrating how vulnerable communities were repeatedly ignored. The book is both forensic and deeply humane, honouring the lives affected while demanding accountability. It is essential reading for understanding the real consequences of political choices.

Hannah Barnes offers a deeply researched and sensitive examination of the collapse of the Tavistock children’s gender identity service. Through extensive interviews with clinicians, families, and former patients, she reconstructs how concerns went unaddressed within a pressured and politically charged institution. Barnes writes with balance and compassion, prioritising nuance over sensationalism. She highlights systemic failures without diminishing the complexity of individual experiences. The book reflects broader debates about healthcare governance, safeguarding, and the politicisation of identity. It is a challenging, essential contribution to a contentious public conversation, grounded in evidence rather than rhetoric.

Annabel Sowemimo’s Divided is a bold and necessary examination of racism in modern healthcare systems. Drawing on medical history, case studies, and her own experience as a doctor, she reveals how structural inequalities are embedded in clinical practice, research, and policy. Sowemimo writes with clarity and conviction, making complex systems accessible while highlighting their profound human impact. She challenges readers to confront uncomfortable truths about who is harmed and who is protected in current medical structures. The book is both a critique and a call to action, urging institutions to reckon with their colonial and racial legacies. It is impactful, urgent, and deeply important.

Luke Harding’s Invasion is a gripping account of Russia’s full-scale assault on Ukraine, captured through frontline reporting, geopolitical analysis, and poignant human stories. Harding draws on his deep experience as a foreign correspondent to contextualise the war within decades of Kremlin strategy and Western miscalculation. His writing is vivid but never sensationalist, conveying the terror and resilience of those in the conflict’s path. Harding excels at connecting individual experiences to broader political shifts, giving readers a ground-level view of a rapidly changing world order. The book is urgent, authoritative, and emotionally resonant — a vital record of the war’s first year.

Philippe Sands weaves legal drama, colonial history, and contemporary diplomacy into a gripping narrative about the Chagos Islands and Britain’s ongoing refusal to relinquish control. Sands excels at turning complex international law into compelling storytelling, while foregrounding the human cost of displacement. The book demonstrates how colonial logic continues to shape modern geopolitics, revealing the gap between Britain’s rhetoric of justice and its actions. Sands’s prose is elegant and precise, filled with moral urgency. It is both a historical reckoning and a legal thriller, compelling in its clarity and devastating in its implications.

Emily Kenway’s book is a powerful exploration of the global care crisis, weaving personal experience with policy analysis to expose the hidden labour sustaining societies. She dismantles myths about caregiving as a private or apolitical act, showing how austerity, gendered expectations, and economic inequality create unsustainable burdens for families. Kenway’s writing is empathetic, incisive, and sharply argued. She centres the voices of caregivers while examining the structural forces that render their work invisible. The result is both a critique and a roadmap, urging us to rethink how care is valued and supported. It is galvanising, humane, and urgently needed.

In Fire of the Dragon, Ian Williams provides a clear-eyed examination of China’s growing military power and the geopolitical tensions shaping its relationships with the West. Through detailed analysis and first-hand reporting, Williams traces how China’s ambitions have expanded from economic dominance to strategic and territorial influence. His writing is authoritative yet accessible, offering readers a grounded understanding of an increasingly volatile global dynamic. Williams avoids alarmism, instead presenting a sober assessment of risk, miscalculation, and rivalry. The book is timely, balanced, and essential for anyone seeking to understand the shifts defining the twenty-first century.

John McManus offers a revealing portrait of Qatar beyond the glossy image projected by the World Cup and global soft power campaigns. Through on-the-ground reporting, he uncovers the contradictions of a nation defined by extreme wealth, migrant labour, and strict social controls. McManus’s writing is perceptive and often surprising, highlighting voices rarely heard in discussions about the Gulf. He shows how identity, class, and national ambition intersect in everyday life, revealing a society undergoing rapid transformation. The book is richly textured, nuanced, and refreshingly free of cliché. It is an essential corrective to simplistic narratives about the region.

Angela Saini’s The Patriarchs is a sweeping and illuminating examination of how patriarchal structures emerged — and how they persist today. Drawing on anthropology, history, and global case studies, Saini debunks simplistic narratives of male dominance as ‘natural’ or universal. Her writing is clear, compelling, and intellectually rigorous, inviting readers to rethink long-held assumptions about gender and power. She reveals a complex picture in which patriarchy is neither inevitable nor monolithic, but constructed and reinforced through specific political choices. The book is both scholarly and accessible, making it a vital resource for understanding the roots of inequality.