--- description: Graeme Gibson, the Canadian author of 'Five Legs' and 'Perpetual Motion' and partner of Margaret Atwood, has died at 85. title: Graeme Gibson, Canadian Author and Margaret Atwood's Longtime Partner, Dies at 85 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc2e6abe6f1ec6943/698a031c929fad0ee8bf4eed/graeme-gibson-death.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Graeme Gibson, Canadian Author and Margaret Atwood's Longtime Partner, Dies at 85 by [Rachel E. Greenspan](/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 18, 2019 5:11 PM CUT  Graeme Gibson at his Toronto home on January 16, 2008. Graeme Gibson at his Toronto home on January 16, 2008.Andrew Francis Wallace—Toronto Star/Getty Images by [Rachel E. Greenspan](/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 18, 2019 5:11 PM CUT Graeme Gibson, the Canadian author of books including _Five Legs_ and _Perpetual Motion_ and longtime partner of author [Margaret Atwood](https://time.com/4747102/margaret-atwood-time-100-handmaids-tale/ "undefined"), has died. He was 85. His publisher, Penguin Random House, [announced his death](https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/penguin-random-house-canada-shares-the-sad-news-of-celebrated-canadian-author-graeme-gibson-s-passing-808540121.html "undefined") in a press release Wednesday. Atwood said [in a statement](https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/penguin-random-house-canada-shares-the-sad-news-of-celebrated-canadian-author-graeme-gibson-s-passing-808540121.html "undefined") that her longtime love “went out on a high.” --- > “” --- _The Handmaid’s Tale_ author recently told TIME for its [Sept. 3 cover story](https://time.com/5667821/margaret-atwood-the-testaments/ "undefined") that she became a caretaker to Gibson while he battled dementia, bringing him to doctor’s appointments while completing her latest novel, _The Testaments,_ a sequel to her acclaimed dystopian best-seller. The literary couple met in writing circles in the 1970s they lived together in Toronto until his death. Although the two never married, they had a daughter together, Eleanor Jess Atwood Gibson, in 1976\. Gibson previously had two sons — [Matthew and Grae Gibson](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2003/apr/26/fiction.margaretatwood "undefined") — with Shirley Gibson.  Margaret Atwood and Graeme Gibson in Mantova, Italy on December 7, 2017. Leonardo Cendamo—Getty Images Gibson was born in London, Ontario, in 1934\. His first book, _Five Legs,_ was published in 1969\. He went on to pen fiction books including _Gentleman Death_ and _Communion a_nd non-fiction books including _The Bedside Book of Birds_ and _Eleven Canadian Novelists —_ which featured an interview with Atwood herself. His final book, _The Bedside Book of Beasts,_ was published in 2009. He was a founding member of multiple writers’ organizations, including the [Writers’ Trust of Canada](https://www.writerstrust.com/ "undefined"), [PEN Canada](https://pencanada.ca "undefined") and Writers’ Union of Canada, which created the [Graeme Gibson Award](https://www.writersunion.ca/graeme-gibson-award "undefined") in 1991 to honor “varied and remarkable contributions” to improve circumstances for Canadian writers. The author’s passion for literature was only matched by his love for birds. He served as a council member of the World Wildlife Fund Canada and also served, with Atwood, as BirdLife International’s Rare Bird Club’s Joint Honorary President. With a shared love of literature and birding, Gibson and Atwood remained close in their decades together, as noted in a [2017 _New Yorker_](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/17/margaret-atwood-the-prophet-of-dystopia "undefined") profile of Atwood, which also confirmed his early dementia diagnosis and their shared support for Canada’s dying-with-dignity movement. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5680297/author-graeme-gibson-dies-margaret-atwood/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5680297/author-graeme-gibson-dies-margaret-atwood/"},"headline":"Graeme Gibson, Canadian Author and Margaret Atwood's Longtime Partner, Dies at 85","datePublished":"2019-09-18T17:11:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:56:38.270Z","description":"'We are grateful for his wise, ethical, and committed life,' Atwood said","url":"https://time.com/5680297/author-graeme-gibson-dies-margaret-atwood/","keywords":["Books","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc2e6abe6f1ec6943/698a031c929fad0ee8bf4eed/graeme-gibson-death.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rachel E. 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