9 Award Nominated Authors Coming to the Festival
'Tis the season for book awards! The fall is always an exciting time in the literary community with longlists and shortlists for some of the worlds most exciting awards being released. This year, we are excited to have so many nominated authors at the Festival, both from Canada and around the world. Read more about the nominated authors below.
André Alexis
André Alexis is no stranger to the Giller Prize, having won for his novel Fifteen Dogs in 2015. His latest collection of short stories, Other Worlds has been longlisted for the prize in 2025.
Events featuring André:
Fiction Across Worlds: André Alexis & Susan Choi | November 1 at 1:30 PM
Ibtisam Azem
Palestinian author Ibtisam Azem's novel, The Book of Disappearance was longlisted for the 2025 International Booker Prize. First published in 2014 in Arabic, the translation was released in 2019.
Events featuring Ibtisam:
Vanishing Worlds, Fractured Homelands: Ibtisam Azem & Samrat Upadhyay | November 1 at 4:30 PM
Susan Choi
Flashlight, the latest from Susan Choi, traces a father's disappearance across time, nations, and memory. The novel has been longlisted for the National Book Award as well as shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
Events featuring Susan:
Fiction Across Worlds: André Alexis & Susan Choi | November 1 at 1:30 PM
Kiran Desai
Critically acclaimed author Kiran Desai will be coming to the Festival with her book The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. This is her first novel in 20 years, having won the Prize back in 2006. You can read more about the author and her new book in the New York Times.
Events featuring Kiran:
Emma Donoghue
Emma Donoghue is an award-winning novelist, screenwriter and playwright. Her novel Room won the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and was shortlisted for the Man Booker and Orange Prizes. Her latest novel The Paris Express was longlisted for the 2025 Giller Prize.
Events featuring Emma:
Stories in Time: Emma Donoghue & Alyson Richman | November 1 at 5 PM
Jonas Hassan Khemeri
Jonas Hassan Khemeri is an acclaimed author of novels, plays, and a collection of essays and short stories, with his work being translated to over 35 languages. His latest novel The Sisters was longlisted for the National Book Award.
Events featuring Jonas:
Tea, Cake and Family Sagas: Fatma Ayedimir & Jonas Hassen Khemiri | November 1 at 11 AM
Vinh Nguyen
Vinh Nguyen's memoir, The Migrant Rain Falls in Reverse follows his family's escape from Vietnam and the father’s mysterious disappearance along the way. Vinh was featured in the Spring 2025 season of Toronto Lit Up, a programme spotlighting local authors book launches. His memoir is nominated for the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Fiction.
Events featuring Vinh:
Stories of Family & Politics: Vinh Nguyen & Jeremy Tiang | October 31 at 5 PM
Souvankham Thammavongsa
Previous Giller Prize-winner Souvankham Thammavongsa is nominated again for her debut novel, Pick a Colour. She previously won in 2020 for her story collection, How to Pronounce Knife.
Events Featuring Souvankham:
Changing Colours: Souvankham Thammavongsa & Ian Williams | November 2 at 11:30 AM
Ian Williams
Ian Williams is the author of seven acclaimed books of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. His latest novel, You've Changed was longlisted for the 2025 Giller Prize.
Events featuring Ian:
A Modern Marriage: Eimear McBride & Ian Williams | October 29 at 7:30 PM
Changing Colours: Souvankham Thammavongsa & Ian Williams | November 2 at 11:30 AM
View the full event lineup here.