And Other Stories

North England

And Other Stories, winner of Small Press of the Year, has long had a cultural impact far out of keeping with its resources, and 2025 brought the commercial results it richly deserves.

Revenue was the highest in its history, with UK and European print sales nearly doubling. The undoubted highlight was the International Booker Prize triumph for Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, translated by Deepa Bhasthi – a perfect example of the kind of inventive literary translation, often overlooked by bigger publishers, that And Other Stories does so well.

More prize glory came via Manya Wilkinson’s Lublin, which scooped the Wingate Prize for Jewish Literature, the Royal Society of Literature’s Encore Award and the Hawthornden Prize. From a rich backlist, Deborah Levy and Eva Baltasar stood out with sales. As is often the case at small presses, much of the business came from partnerships with like-minded independent bookshops. There was steady revenue from subscriber members too.

Alongside the press’ diverse output is a heartfelt commitment to representation. From its base in Sheffield, it highlights the wealth of small presses that operate beyond London, champions writing from LGBTQ+ and working-class backgrounds, and has promised that at least half of its new books will be written by the global majority.

“It was a brilliant year for And Other Stories,” said the judges. “Their publishing is distinctive and valuable. Beyond the prizes, the most impressive thing is the hard-wired commitment to diversity with real, quantifiable and trackable pledges.”

The 10 small presses on this shortlist were the regional and country winners of this award. As the winner of this category, And Other Stories joins the shortlist for Independent Publisher of the Year.