Nobel-Worthy English Language Writers

 

Nobel-Worthy English Language Writers  

According to me, they are strong contenders for the Nobel Prize in Literature in upcoming years. 

1. Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (Kenya, born 1938)  

Best works: ''A Grain of Wheat'', ''Decolonising the Mind'' 

Why: A powerful voice in postcolonial African literature; gave up English for Gikuyu to resist cultural imperialism

2. Margaret Atwood (Canada, born 1939)  

Best works: ''The Handmaid’s Tale'', ''Oryx and Crake''  

Why: Feminist icon, environmentalist, dystopian prophet. A global literary and cultural force

3. Salman Rushdie (India/UK, born 1947)  

Best works: ''Midnight’s Children''. 

Why: Complex narratives, postcolonial brilliance, linguistic innovation and personal sacrifice for free expression. 

[Note: I dislike this writer and I pray to God Almighty to disgrace him and do not make him a Nobel laureate. But, there are high chances that this damned one will get it.] 

4. Don DeLillo (USA, born 1936)  

Best works: ''White Noise'', ''Underworld''  

Why: Profound critique of American consumerism, media and politics in postmodern prose

5. Thomas Pynchon (USA, born 1937)  

Best works: ''Gravity’s Rainbow'', ''The Crying of Lot 49''.   

Why: Reclusive genius whose dense, chaotic novels capture the spirit of 20th-century paranoia and complexity. 

6. Jamaica Kincaid (Antigua/USA, born 1949)  

Best works: ''Annie John'', ''The Autobiography of My Mother''.  

Why: Sharp, lyrical and haunting explorations of colonialism, memory and identity

7. Ian McEwan (UK, born 1948)  

Best works: ''Atonement'', ''Amsterdam''. 

Why: Deep psychological insight and moral dilemmas told through elegant prose. 

[ Note: May God not make him a Nobel laureate! He is evil too.] 

8. Julian Barnes (UK, born 1946)  

Best works: ''The Sense of an Ending'', ''Flaubert’s Parrot''  

Why: Intellectual, philosophical and emotionally subtle storytelling

9. Zadie Smith (UK, born 1975)  

Best works: ''White Teeth'', ''On Beauty''.   

Why: Multicultural London through witty, fresh and insightful narratives. Addresses race, class and identity with nuance

10. Ali Smith (UK, born 1962)  

Best works: ''How to Be Both'', ''Autumn''.  

Why: Inventive use of time and narrative, deeply humane and politically aware

11. Colm Tóibín (Ireland, born 1955)  

Best works: ''Brooklyn'', ''The Master''.   

Why: Subtle meditations on exile, sexuality and Irish identity. Emotionally restrained yet profound

12. Anne Carson (Canada, born 1950)  

Best works: ''Autobiography of Red'', ''Nox''.   

Why: Blends poetry, classics and philosophy. Radical in form and deeply intellectual

13. Marilynne Robinson (USA, born 1943)  

Best works: ''Gilead'', ''Housekeeping''.   

Why: Spiritual, lyrical prose that explores grace, theology and American identity

14. Ben Okri (Nigeria/UK, born 1959)  

Best works: ''The Famished Road''  

Why: Magical realism rooted in African spiritual tradition; Booker Prize winner

15. Lorrie Moore (USA, born 1957)  

Best works: ''Birds of America'', ''A Gate at the Stairs'' 

Why: Master of the short story; blends humour, heartbreak and literary elegance

16. John Banville (Ireland, born 1945)  

Best works: ''The Sea'', ''The Book of Evidence''.   

Why: Deeply literary and philosophical; celebrated for sentence-level brilliance

17. Gerald Murnane (Australia, born 1939)  

Best works: ''The Plains'', ''Border Districts''.  

Why: Hypnotic and philosophical fiction blending memory, landscape and metaphysics

18. George Saunders (USA, born 1958)  

Best works: ''Lincoln in the Bardo'', ''Tenth of December''  

Why: Innovator in short fiction blending satire and deep empathy with formal experimentation

19. Yaa Gyasi (Ghana/USA, born 1989)  

Best works: ''Homegoing'' ''Transcendent Kingdom''.  

Why: Emerging voice exploring diasporic identity, race, science and spirituality with emotional power

20. Teju Cole (Nigeria/USA, born 1975)  

Best works: ''Open City'', ''Blind Spot''  

Why: Intellectual clarity, poetic insight and cosmopolitan exploration of race, memory and modern life.   

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21. António Lobo Antunes (1942): António Lobo Antunes is often considered a strong candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He is widely regarded as one of Portugal's most prominent living writers and continues to reside in Lisbon. His literary career spans over four decades, during which he has authored more than thirty novels and received numerous prestigious awards, including the Camões Prize in 2007. So far, only one person from Portugal has received the Nobel Prize in Literature:José Saramago in 1998. António Lobo Antunes could be the second person from Portugal. 

—Sahil Sharifdin Bhat Guesswork