Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize

Shortlist 2023

The 2023 Royal Society Science Book Prize shortlist features the youngest shortlistee in the Prize’s history, debut author Nicklas Brendborg – a PhD student of molecular biology at the University of Copenhagen – whilst Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ed Yong is recognised for the second time, having previously appeared on the 2017 list. Joining them on the shortlist are a second Pulitzer Prize recipient, Kate Zernike, reporter for The New York Times; Roma Agrawal, an engineer, author and presenter who worked on the Shard, Western Europe's tallest tower; writer, birdwatcher and conductor Lev Parikian; and journalist and author of sixteen books David Quammen. 

Judging panel 2023

The five-strong judging panel for the 2023 Prize, supported by the Trivedi Family Foundation, has been announced. The Prize will be chaired by Professor Alain Goriely FRS. He is joined by a panel of representatives from the worlds of science and culture: Anita Singh, Bonnie Garmus, Paterson Joseph and Dr Rebecca Henry.

About the prize

Since 1988, the Royal Society has celebrated outstanding popular science writing and authors. Over the decades, the Prize has celebrated some notable winners including Bill Bryson, Stephen Hawking, Camilla Pang, and most recently Henry Gee in 2022. 

Each year our panel of expert judges, comprising eminent scientists, authors, journalists and broadcasters, choose the book that they believe makes popular science writing compelling and accessible to the public.

Find out more about the prize. For all enquiries please contact sciencebooks@royalsociety.org.  

Timeline