Five writers, Mona Awad, Eddy Boudel Tan, Emma Donoghue, Emma Knight, and Souvankham Thammavongsa, have been selected as finalists for the 2025 Giller Prize, a prestigious $100,000 award that celebrates excellence in Canadian fiction. The shortlist for 2025 showcases a diverse range of novels, including Emma Donoghue’s “The Paris Express” set in an 1800s train disaster, Eddy Boudel Tan’s “The Tiger and the Cosmonaut” exploring a family tragedy, and Souvankham Thammavongsa’s “Pick A Colour” delving into life in a nail salon.
Souvankham Thammavongsa, a previous Giller Prize winner for “How To Pronounce Knife,” is among the talented finalists, along with Emma Donoghue, who has received recognition in past years for her works. Mona Awad, known for “Bunny” and “13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl,” is also a contender this year. Notably, Emma Knight stands out as the sole debut author on the shortlist with her novel “The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus.”
The Giller Prize shortlisted books are accessible through the National Network for Equitable Library Services and the Centre for Equitable Library Access. The finalists were selected by the jury chair Dionne Irving, along with jurors Loghan Paylor and Deepa Rajagopalan. The award ceremony, scheduled for November 17, will be hosted by comedian Rick Mercer and broadcast on various platforms.
In response to past controversies, the Giller Prize recently ended its sponsorship with Scotiabank, marking a significant change in its history. The award, founded in memory of Doris Giller by her husband Jack Rabinovitch in 1994, continues to highlight exceptional Canadian literary talent.