DISCOVER THE 2026 GOVERNOR GENERAL'S LITERARY AWARDS FINALISTS

The Canada Council for the Arts announces the finalists

OTTAWA, ON, Oct. 28, 2026 /CNW/ -- The Canada Council for the Arts is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2026 Governor General's Literary Awards (GGBooks). Recognizing Canadian literature in both official languages, the awards celebrate books published in Canada across seven categories and highlight the work of writers, translators and illustrators whose stories enrich our country's literary landscape.

"For 90 years, the Governor General's Literary Awards have celebrated the creativity, talent and breadth of literary voices in Canada. This year's finalists reflect the richness of Canadian storytelling and the vital role that literature plays in helping us understand each other, explore new perspectives and connect with the world around us. The Canada Council for the Arts is proud to recognize these remarkable creators and the publishers who helped bring their work to readers across the country."

-- Michelle Chawla, Director and CEO, Canada Council for the Arts

Following a rigorous peer assessment process, the Canada Council's committees selected the finalist books from among works published in Canada over the last year. The finalists represent exceptional achievement in literary creation, translation and illustration, and showcase the diversity of stories, experiences and perspectives that contribute to Canada's vibrant literary community.

About the GGBooks

• Founded in 1936, the Governor General's Literary Awards celebrate their 90^th anniversary in 2026. They are among Canada's oldest and most distinguished literary awards, with a total annual prize value of $450,000.
• The Canada Council for the Arts has funded, administered and promoted the awards since 1959.
• Finalists are selected by category-specific, language-based peer assessment committees (seven in English and seven in French).
• The writers, translators and illustrators whose books are selected as winners in each category receive a $25,000 prize. Publishers receive $3,000 to promote each winning book, and finalists receive $1,000.

English-language 2026 finalists

Fiction

• Good Guys – Sharon Bala (St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador), McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Mother of God – Sara Peters (Toronto, Ontario), McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Property – Kate Cayley (Toronto, Ontario), Coach House Books
• Suddenly Light – Nina Dunic (Scarborough, Ontario), Invisible Publishing
• The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts – Kim Fu (Seattle, United States), HarperCollins Canada

Poetry

• An Orange, A Syllable – Gillian Sze (Montréal, Quebec), ECW Press
• Catastrophilia – Julie Roorda (St. Catharines, Ontario), Guernica Editions
• Interposition – Kaie Kellough (Montréal, Quebec), McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Pitiful: Poems – Brandi Bird (Burnaby, British Columbia), House of Anansi Press
• The World After Rain – Canisia Lubrin (Whitby, Ontario), McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House Canada)

Drama

• Prince Faggot – Jordan Tannahill (London, United Kingdom), Playwrights Canada Press
• PYPER – Susanna Fournier (Toronto, Ontario), Playwrights Canada Press
• Red Like Fruit – Hannah Moscovitch (Halifax, Nova Scotia), Playwrights Canada Press
• Salesman in China – Leanna Brodie and Jovanni Sy (Montréal, Quebec), Playwrights Canada Press

Non-fiction

• A Truce That Is Not Peace – Miriam Toews (Toronto, Ontario), Knopf Canada (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Black Bear – Trina Moyles (Whitehorse, Yukon), Knopf Canada (Penguin Random House Canada)
• The Lobster Trap – Greg Mercer (Toronto, Ontario), McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House Canada)
• The Work of Our Hands – Adrian Sutherland (Attawapiskat, Ontario), Viking Canada (Penguin Random House Canada)
• You Will Not Kill Our Imagination – Saeed Teebi (Oakville, Ontario), Scribner Canada (Simon & Schuster Canada)

Young People's Literature – Text

• Seabird – Michelle Kadarusman (Toronto, Ontario), Pajama Press
• The Love Song of Mr. Byrd – Philippa Dowding (Toronto, Ontario), DCB Young Readers (Cormorant Books)
• The Rebel Girls of Rome – Jordyn Taylor (New York City, United States), HarperCollins Canada
• The World's End – David A. Robertson (Winnipeg, Manitoba), Tundra Books (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Touching Grass – Kristy Jackson (Corman Park, Saskatchewan), HarperCollins Canada

Young People's Literature – Illustrated Books

• A Door Is to Open – Kyo Maclear and Julie Morstad (Toronto, Ontario / Vancouver, British Columbia), Tundra Books (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Aggie and the Ghost – Matthew Forsythe (Montréal, Quebec), Simon & Schuster Canada
• Billie Builds a RoboCorn – José Lourenço and James Braithwaite (Toronto, Ontario), Tundra Books (Penguin Random House Canada)
• Call Me Gray – Andrew Larsen, Bells Larsen and Tallulah Fontaine (Toronto, Ontario / Toronto, Ontario, and Montréal, Quebec / Montréal, Quebec, and Los Angeles, United States), Kids Can Press
• Little Moments in a Big Universe – Todd Stewart (Montréal, Quebec), Owlkids Books

Translation

• All Kidding Aside – Neil Smith (Montréal, Quebec), Baraka Books
• The Love of Man – Jonathan Kaplansky (Montréal, Quebec), Guernica Editions
• The Origin of the Future – Jonathan Kaplansky (Montréal, Quebec), Guernica Editions
• Together by the Sea – Katia Grubisic (Montréal, Quebec), House of Anansi Press
• When Water Became Blue – Rhonda Mullins (Montréal, Quebec), Coach House Books

French-language 2026 finalists

Fiction

• Comme les éclipses – Alex Thibodeau (Québec City, Quebec), Tête première
• Godpèle – Gabriel Marcoux-Chabot (Saguenay, Quebec), La Peuplade
• Pathologique – Sarah McNeil (Sherbrooke, Quebec), Éditions Poètes de brousse
• Tout cela m'appartient – Virginie Chaloux-Gendron (Québec City, Quebec), Les Éditions du Boréal
• La glace part en morceaux – Charlotte Gosselin (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions Pow Pow

Poetry

• À toute heure – Martine Audet (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions du Noroît
• Cinéma – Stéfanie Tremblay (Chicoutimi, Quebec), La Peuplade
• Histoire de ma gueule – Elissa Kayal (Montréal, Quebec), L'Oie de Cravan
• Le royaume des chuchotements – Vincent Lambert (Saint-Philémon, Quebec), Les Éditions du Boréal
• Précieux sang – Marie-Hélène Voyer (Rimouski, Quebec), La Peuplade

Drama

• Après t'avoir bordé tendrement, je meurs – Stéphanie Labbé (Montréal, Quebec), Dramaturges Éditeurs
• Chronologies – Stephie Mazunya (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions du remue-ménage
• Corps fantômes – François Édouard Bernier, Dany Boudreault, Maxime Carbonneau, Sébastien David, Christian Fortin, Célia Gouin-Arsenault, Joephillip Lafortune et Matéo Pineault (Montréal, Quebec), Atelier 10
• Faon – Marie-Christine Lê-Huu (Montréal, Quebec), Atelier 10
• L'histoire de comment je me suis séparée en deux – Hoda Adra (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions du Noroît

Non-fiction

• Le spleen d'Oulan-Bator – Jean-Frédéric Légaré‑Tremblay, Les Presses de l'Université de Montréal
• Ondinnok. Le désir secret de l'âme – Catherine Joncas and Yves Sioui Durand (Baie-Saint-Paul, Québec), les éditions du passage
• Penser croche – Dalie Giroux, Mémoire d'encrier
• Sur l'errance – Anouk Sugàr (Montréal, Quebec), Nota bene
• Vida. Journal de la peur – Nicholas Dawson (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions du remue-ménage

Young People's Literature – Text

• Au chevet de la lumière – Jean‑Christophe Réhel (Repentigny, Quebec), la courte échelle
• Comment convaincre un fantôme de déménager – Maude Ménard‑Dunn (Dunham, Quebec), Éditions Québec Amérique
• Les différences invisibles – Maude Nepveu‑Villeneuve (Montréal, Québec), Éditions Écosociété
• Un don du ciel – Eveline Payette, Les Éditions du Boréal
• Un roi sans couronne – Uashteskun (Montréal, Quebec), Dominique et compagnie (Les éditions Héritage)

Young People's Literature – Illustrated Books

• À l'enVERRE – Orbie (Percé, Quebec), Éditions Les 400 coups
• Fleurs de verre – Eve Patenaude (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions XYZ
• La maison cachette – Erika Soucy et Geneviève Bigué (L'Ange‑Gardien, Quebec), Éditions de la Pastèque
• Minuit sonne et farandole – Alizée Goulet and Laurence Goulet‑Tremblay (Deux‑Montagnes, Quebec), Monsieur Ed
• Nos poissons – Éric Dupont and Mathilde Cinq‑Mars (Montréal, Quebec), Marchand de feuilles

Translation (from English to French)

• Jungle – Jeannot Clair (Montréal, Quebec), Héliotrope
• La lune des feuilles rouges – Daniel Grenier (Québec City, Quebec), Éditions Prise de parole
• La saignée. Enquête sur l'endométriose et la misogynie médicale ordinaire – Catherine Ego (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions du remue-ménage
• Le trou dans le ciel – Vicky Bernard (Orford, Quebec), Éditions du Noroît
• Seule la peur est bleue – Sophie Voillot (Montréal, Quebec), Éditions Alto

Makeup of the 2026 English-language peer assessment committees

Fiction: Shashi Bhat, Joan Thomas, Kai Thomas
Poetry: Chelene Knight, Tara McGowan-Ross, Ian Roy
Drama: Aviva Armour-Ostroff, Sophie Gee, Ben Nind
Non-Fiction: Linda Morra, Naben Ruthnum, Lindsay Wong
Young People's Literature – Text: Carol-Ann Hoyte, Uma Krishnaswami, Richard Van Camp
Young People's Literature – Illustrated Books: Adam de Souza, Raquel Rivera, Nancy Vo
Translation (from French to English): Jo-Anne Elder, Catherine Khordoc, Howard Scott

Makeup of the 2026 French-language peer assessment committees

Fiction: Katia Belkhodja, Christian Guay-Poliquin, Mélissa Verreault
Poetry: Marie-Andrée Gill, Tania Langlais, Daniel Leblanc-Poirier
Drama: Marianne Dansereau, Thomas Duret, Nadia Girard Eddahia
Non-Fiction: Aline Apostolska, Jérôme Cotte, Catherine Mavrikakis
Young People's Literature – Text: Elizabeth Baril-Lessard, Carole Labarre, Nicolas Paquin
Young People's Literature – Illustrated Books: Myriam Chery, Samuel Larochelle, Charlotte Parent
Translation (from English to French): Louise Gaudette, Jonathan Lamy, Steve Savage

Mark your calendars

The 14 winning books will be announced on November 12, 2026.  For more information, visit ggbooks.ca.

About the Canada Council for the Arts

The Canada Council for the Arts' mandate is to "foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts." Through its grants, services, prizes, initiatives and payments, the Canada Council supports a dynamic and diverse arts and literary scene. These activities generate a meaningful cultural, social and economic impact for over 2,000 communities in all parts of the country and beyond. The investments and leadership of the Canada Council help advance public engagement in the arts from coast to coast to coast, while also contributing to the international recognition of artists and arts organizations from Canada. 

SOURCE Canada Council for the Arts

Media relations contacts: For media requests, including interviews with artists, please contact: Megan Rivas-Gagnon, Media Relations, TACT, [email protected], 514 691-4376; Karine Charbonneau, Director, Communications, Canada Council for the Arts, [email protected], 613-239-3958, 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5151