Hanif Abdurraqib, a celebrated poet and author from Columbus, has been named the recipient of the 2026 Weston International Award. The award, given by the Writers’ Trust of Canada, honors the career achievement of an international author for their outstanding body of work in literary nonfiction.

Award Recognition

Abdurraqib’s writing is sharp, inventive, and tuned for this specific moment in our culture. He has already accomplished much in his relatively young career, including being named a MacArthur Fellow and winning an award for criticism from the National Book Critics Circle Awards.

David Leonard, executive director of Writers’ Trust, said, “Writers like Hanif Abdurraqib are why the Weston International Award was created. His writing is sharp, inventive, and tuned for this specific moment in our culture.”

In addition to the $75,000 CAD prize, Abdurraqib will also feature onstage at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto in September for an author conversation centered on the place nonfiction writing holds within the world.

Original reporting: Matter News (Columbus) — read the source article.