Writers’ Trust Announces Shortlist for 16th Annual Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction
On September 9 Writers’ Trust of Canada announced the five finalists for the 2026 Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction, Canada’s premier award for literary nonfiction. Now in its 16th year, the prize recognizes outstanding works of nonfiction that demonstrate exceptional voice, storytelling, and literary craft. Supported by The Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation, the award carries a $75,000 prize for the winner, with each finalist receiving $5,000.
A jury of acclaimed writers, including Katherine Ashenburg, Debra Thompson, and Joshua Whitehead, selected this year’s finalists from 113 submitted titles. The 2026 shortlist includes:
• Richard Kelly Kemick – Decadence
• Robert Moor – In Trees: An Exploration
• Trina Moyles – Black Bear: A Story of Siblinghood and Survival
• Julian Brave NoiseCat – We Survived the Night: An Indigenous Reckoning
• Dan Werb – Our Wild Familiars: How Animals Are Adapting to Cities and Reshaping the Natural World
The Foundation’s support of the prize reflects the enduring commitment of the late Honourable Hilary M. Weston to champion Canadian writers and celebrate literary excellence. Since 2019, the Foundation has contributed nearly $4 million to Writers’ Trust programs, including both the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction and the Hilary Weston International Award.
“We’re delighted to see this shortlist of excellent books that challenge, delight, inform, and inspire,” said David Leonard, Executive Director of Writers’ Trust of Canada. “This year’s finalists showcase the power of nonfiction stories to shape our understanding of who we are as individuals, but especially who we can be as a society.”
Read more about the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction here.
Learn more about the shortlisted authors and the books recognized this year here.