Harvey is the first female author to win the prize since 2019. Photo: AFPA lifelong fascination with outer space inspired British author Samantha Harvey to write her novel Orbital, which this week won the prestigious Booker Prize. The 49-year-old author admitted that she had no specialist knowledge but was instead inspired by the live video feed from the International Space Station. But she insisted: "I think this novel is really more about the Earth than it is about space itself. But I think that's something that's entirely beyond my remit."
