Canisia Lubrin, David A. Robertson and Miriam Toews are among the finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards.
The prizes, administered by the Canada Council for the Arts, are awarded in seven English-language categories: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, young people’s literature — text, young people’s literature — illustration, drama and French-to-English translation. Seven French-language awards are also given out in the same categories.
A total of $450,000 is awarded across all the prizes annually.
The winner in each category will receive $25,000. The remaining finalists will each receive $1,000.
The finalists and winners are chosen by a peer assessment committee for each category.
The winners will be announced on Nov. 12, 2026.
Lubrin is nominated in the poetry category for her book The World After Rain.
The World After Rain is a long, epic poem that’s an elegy to her mother, Anne, and examines the anticipatory grief of Anne’s 10-year illness.
“My mother was the kind of person who made every effort to raise her children and in the most inventive ways,” said Lubrin on an episode of Bookends with Mattea Roach.
“And for me, being in her orbit was a constant reminder of how miraculous life could be.”
Lubrin is also the author of books including Code Noir, which won the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction, and The Dyzgraphxst, which won the 2021 Griffin Poetry Prize. Born in St. Lucia and now based in Whitby, Ont., Lubrin is the poetry editor at McClelland & Stewart.
Robertson is shortlisted in the young people’s literature — text category for his book The World’s End.
The sixth and final book in Robertson’s beloved series The Misewa Saga, The World’s End follows Eli, Morgan and Emily as they escape from captivity. As the war between the humans, animal beings and Bird Warriors continues, Eli faces a personal decision that has the power to save Misewa forever.
Robertson, a member of the Norway House Cree Nation, has written over 30 books for both children and adults. On the Trapline and When We Were Alone both won Governor General’s Literary Awards. He is based in Winnipeg.
Toews is nominated in the nonfiction category for her memoir A Truce That Is Not Peace.
In A Truce That is Not Peace, Toews answers the question “why do you write?” in preparation for a literary event in Mexico City. As she thinks the question over, she unearths new layers of grief and helplessness surrounding her sister’s suicide, which happened over 15 years ago — and realizes that one of her reasons for writing is to fill the gaping silence her sister left behind.
“There’s something so pretentious to me or self-indulgent or just imposter-y about writing,” she said on an episode of The Current. “It’s something that I’m so embarrassed about, so mortified by, and yet, you know, I can’t stop doing it. I need to do it.”
Toews is the Toronto-based author of several books, including A Complicated Kindness, Fight Night and Summer of My Amazing Luck. Her work has earned numerous awards, including the Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction, the Writers’ Trust Engel Findley Award and the Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize.
Toews’ book Women Talking was adapted into an Academy-award winning film directed by Sarah Polley. She was also appointed to the Order of Canada in 2026.
The prize administrator, the Canada Council for the Arts, is also a partner of the CBC Literary Prizes. Some of this year’s Governor General’s Literary Award nominees have connections to the prizes, including Nina Dunic who has been longlisted four times for the Short Story Prize, Kate Cayley who was on this year’s shortlist and Saeed Teebi who was shortlisted in 2021.
The 2027 CBC Short Story Prize is currently open for submissions until Nov. 1, 2026.
You can see the finalists in all seven English-language categories below. The French-language categories are available on the Canada Council for the Arts website.
Fiction
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for fiction. (Graphic by CBC)
The fiction finalists are:
- Good Guys by Sharon Bala
- Mother of God by Sara Peters
- Property by Kate Cayley
- Suddenly Light by Nina Dunic
- The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts by Kim Fu
The peer assessment committee is Shashi Bhat, Joan Thomas and Kai Thomas.
The 2025 fiction winner was Small Ceremonies by Kyle Edwards.
Nonfiction
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for nonfiction. (Graphic by CBC)
The nonfiction finalists are:
- A Truce That Is Not Peace by Miriam Toews
- Black Bear by Trina Moyles
- The Lobster Trap by Greg Mercer
- The Work of Our Hands by Adrian Sutherland
- You Will Not Kill Our Imagination by Saeed Teebi
The peer assessment committee is Linda Morra, Naben Ruthnum and Lindsay Wong.
The 2025 nonfiction winner was How to Survive a Bear Attack by Claire Cameron.
Poetry
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for poetry. (Graphic by CBC)
The poetry finalists are:
- An Orange, A Syllable by Gillian Sze
- Catastrophilia by Julie Roorda
- Interposition by Kaie Kellough
- Pitiful: Poems by Brandi Bird
- The World After Rain by Canisia Lubrin
The peer assessment committee is Chelene Knight, Tara McGowan-Ross and Ian Roy.
The 2025 poetry winner was Wellwater by Karen Solie.
Young people’s literature — text
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for young people’s literature — text. (Graphic by CBC)
The young people’s literature — text finalists are:
- Seabird by Michelle Kadarusman
- The Love Song of Mr. Byrd by Philippa Dowding
- The Rebel Girls of Rome by Jordyn Taylor
- The World’s End by David A. Robertson
- Touching Grass by Kristy Jackson
The peer assessment committee is Carol-Ann Hoyte, Uma Krishnaswami and Richard Van Camp.
The 2025 young people’s literature — text winner was Tig by Heather Smith.
Young people’s literature — illustrated books
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for young people’s literature — illustration. (Graphic by CBC)
The young people’s literature — illustrated books finalists are:
- A Door Is to Open by Kyo Maclear, illustrated by Julie Morstad
- Aggie and the Ghost by Matthew Forsythe
- Billie Builds a RoboCorn by José Lourenço, illustrated by James Braithwaite
- Call Me Gray by Andrew Larsen and Bells Larsen, illustrated by Tallulah Fontaine
- Little Moments in a Big Universe by Todd Stewart
The peer assessment committee is Adam de Souza, Raquel Rivera and Nancy Vo.
The 2025 young people’s literature — illustrated books winner was This Land is a Lullaby by Tonya Simpson, illustrated by Delreé Dumont.
Translation
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for translation. (Graphic by CBC)
The French-to-English translation finalists are:
- All Kidding Aside by Jean-Christophe Réhel, translated by Neil Smith
- The Love of Man by Hélène Rioux, translated by Jonathan Kaplansky
- The Origin of the Future by Francis Catalano, translated by Jonathan Kaplansky
- Together by the Sea by Marie-Claire Blais, translated by Katia Grubisic
- When Water Became Blue by Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette, translated by Rhonda Mullins
The peer assessment committee is Jo-Anne Elder, Catherine Khordoc and Howard Scott.
The 2025 translation winner was Uiesh / Somewhere by Joséphine Bacon, translated by Jessica Moore.
Drama
The finalists for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards for drama. (Graphic by CBC)
The drama finalists are:
- Prince Faggot by Jordan Tannahill
- PYPER by Susanna Fournier (Toronto, Ontario), Playwrights Canada Press
- Red Like Fruit by Hannah Moscovitch
- Salesman in China by Leanna Brodie and Jovanni Sy
The peer assessment committee is Aviva Armour-Ostroff, Sophie Gee and Ben Nind.
The 2025 drama winner was Rise, Red River by Tara Beagan.
