Manitoba-born authors and illustrators are among the finalists in a range of English-language categories for the 2026 Governor General’s Literary Awards, which were announced Oct. 28.
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Winnipeg Swampy Cree author David
Winnipeg Swampy Cree author David A. Robertson is a finalist in the Young People’s Literature — Text category for his young-adult novel The World’s End, the final instalment of the six-book Misewa Saga.
Robertson is a two-time winner in the Young People’s Literature — Illustrated category of the Governor General’s Literary Awards; in 2017 the picture book When We Were Alone, illustrated by Julie Flett, won the prize, and the pair won again in 2021 for the followup picture book On the Trapline.
He was also a finalist in 2020 in the Young People’s Literature — Text category for The Barren Grounds, the first book of the Misewa Saga.
In the same category, Saskatoon author Kristy Jackson’s
In the same category, Saskatoon author Kristy Jackson’s young-adult novel Touching Grass, featuring illustrations by Winnipeg’s Rhael Mcgregor, is a finalist.
Toronto-based, Manitoba-born Miriam Toews earned a nod in the non-fiction category for her book A Truce That Is Not Peace, a reflection on why she writes and the ways in which an ongoing dialogue with her late sister informs her writing.
The book was also a finalist for the 2025 Hilary Weston Writer’s Trust Prize for Nonfiction.
Toews won the fiction prize in 2004
Toews won the fiction prize in 2004 for her novel A Complicated Kindness and was a finalist in 2018 for the novel Women Talking.
In the poetry category, Winnipeg-born, Vancouver-based Brandi Bird is a finalist for the collection Pitiful. The Saulteaux, Cree and Métis author was a finalist in 2024 for the collection The All + Flesh.
In the drama category, Winnipeg-born, Montreal-based Leanna Brodie is a finalist in the drama category for Salesman in China, co-written with her husband Jovanni Sy.
While no Manitoba authors landed nods
While no Manitoba authors landed nods in the fiction category, one of the three jurors in the category was Winnipeg novelist (and 2019 winner for the novel Five Wives) Joan Thomas, and Winnipeg author Lindsay Wong was one of the three jurors for the non-fiction prize.
Winners in the 14 categories of the Governor General’s Literary Awards each receive $25,000, and will be announced Nov. 12. The complete list of finalists can be seen at ggbooks.ca.
ben.sigurdson@winnipegfreepress.com
Ben Sigurdson
Literary editor, drinks writer
Ben Sigurdson is the Free Press‘s literary editor and drinks writer. He graduated with a master of arts degree in English from the University of Manitoba in 2005, the same year he began writing Uncorked, the weekly Free Press drinks column. He joined theFree Press full time in 2013 as a copy editor before being appointed literary editor in 2014. Read more about Ben.
In addition to providing opinions and analysis on wine and drinks, Ben oversees a team of freelance book reviewers and produces content for the arts and life section, all of which is reviewed by the Free Press’s editing team before being posted online or published in print. It’s part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
