Canisia Lubrin wins Carol Shields Prize for Fiction for ‘Code Noir’

By: The Canadian Press Posted:

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Canisia Lubrin has won the 2025 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction for her book "Code Noir."

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 01/05/2025 (511 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Canisia Lubrin has won the 2025 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction for her book “Code Noir.”

The Whitby, Ont.-based author will receive US$150,000.

The award is the largest English-language literary prize for women and non-binary authors and is open to Canadians and Americans.

Poet and writer Canisia Lubrin is photographed in Whitby, Ontario on Tuesday June 15, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Poet and writer Canisia Lubrin is photographed in Whitby, Ontario on Tuesday June 15, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Another Canadian entry among the five shortlisted books was “Pale Shadows,” written by Dominique Fortier and translated by Rhonda Mullins.

Jury members praised Lubrin’s prose as “polyphonic,” calling “Code Noir” a “virtuoso collection that breaks new ground in short fiction.”

Lubrin’s other work has been recognized with the Griffin Poetry Prize, OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, Windham-Campbell prize for poetry and more.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2025.

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