The author of the novel Alias Grace is Margaret Atwood, a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, and environmental activist. Atwood has published more than 40 books of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, and her work has been translated into over 35 languages. She is best known for her dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale, which won the Governor General's Award and the Arthur C. Clarke Award in 1985. Atwood has also won numerous awards for her other works, including Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in 1996.