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Switzy

Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2026

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Switzy

By: Emma Cline
Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
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Summary

**LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2026**

*A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK 2026: BBC, Publishers Weekly, Lit Hub, Bookstr, Glossary, Paper Trails*

A mesmerising portrait of an ageing man’s last pilgrimage, from the bestselling author of The Girls and The Guest

A private plane cuts through the winter night, somewhere over Greenland. David, a retired executive, sits back in his leather seat, playing solitaire on his phone. Click. Click. Drag. Click. In his pocket is a notebook filled with urgent reminders — but he can no longer read his own handwriting.

He’s travelling with his assistant. There will be a stopover in London, dinner with his adult daughter, a meeting in France with an old friend. His final destination: a clinic in Zurich.

As David glides through hotel rooms, airports and foreign cities, his grasp on the present slips away and the past rushes in.

With David’s arrival in Zurich looming, an exquisitely rendered portrait of an unravelling mind emerges. Hypnotic and moving, Switzy probes the depths of human consciousness, revealing what a man is left with when the accomplishments and compromises that have defined him, and the illusions he's relied on, vanish.

'Immersive, elegiac, and very real' BOOKER PRIZE 2026 JUDGES
'Sublime... completely gripping... a wonder' MARK HADDON
'Her best book yet. Completely extraordinary' DAISY JOHNSON
‘Poignant but unsentimental, it is her best novel yet' JEM CALDER

© Emma Cline 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

 Editors Select Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Psychological Aviation England

Critic Reviews

A perfect novel, one that goes to the places only novels can go (Samantha Harvey)
Masterly, deeply moving (Johanna Thomas-Corr)
A moving story about memory and time that shows Cline is only strengthening her powers
A bravura portrait of a failing mind, told from the inside
Cline writes vividly about the trappings of the elite – the private jets, the heirloom watches – as well as their sad social cost in a story that feels immersive, elegiac, and very real
Cline can always be counted on to deliver a sharp portrait of an uneasy mind... incisive, empathetic, and searing
Cline’s most ambitious novel yet… a book about consciousness, memory, and the strange, pressurised intimacy of a life you know is nearly over… Darkly funny, formally hypnotic, and profoundly moving, it is already one of the most anticipated novels of the second half of the year
Crushing and psychologically astute, Cline’s fourth novel confirms her reputation as one of the freshest voices in contemporary American fiction
The novel’s enduring power lies in our growing understanding of his [Daivd’s] tragic sexual self-denial, as the book morphs into a low-key portrait of shifting mores down the decades. Very well done, and worth a place on the [Booker prize] shortlist
Longlisted for the Booker prize, this is a bravura portrait of a failing mind, told from the inside
All stars
Most relevant
Exquisitely observed and written book marred only by jarring end credits- given the subject matter, a second or two’s pause is surely warranted

Please pause end credits

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Great subject but the main character does not warm to my heart! Maybe the problem is his early dementia but he does not seem to be Avery nice man. Hence the plot becomes long and laborious with me feeling no empathy for David. Only “the boy” seems like a good guy - but there again, he is probably going to get the credit cards and the petty cash. At the end of the day the protagonist had little dignity - blame it on the dementia

Lack of dignity …despite seeking Dignitas

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The 2 main characters with their interactions were sublime. The patience with David and how each potential issue was handled was incredible writing. This book was so final and yet so brave.

So respectful on the subject matter.

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I really struggled at first. I almost didn’t see it through but boy I’m glad I did. The last chapter had me right there in the room with them. Something incredibly special about a piece of writing when it takes over your five senses.

Outstanding

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