Carol Shields, one of Canada's most celebrated authors, died Wednesday night after a long battle with breast cancer. She was 68.

"It is going to take all of our courage, resolve and grace to even try to go on without her," said her daughter Anne Giardini. "She had many books left to write. We are bereft."

Shields was born in Illinois in 1935, but moved to Canada in 1957 after meeting her future husband on a college exchange program in England. He became an engineering professor in his homeland. She became a Canadian citizen.

Despite the challenge of raising five children, Shields pursued a graduate degree in English literature. She then took up writing largely out of frustration as a reader. She said she couldn't find enough interesting books about women's lives.

Turning 40 ended up being a big deal. Her first novel, Small Ceremonies and her thesis on Susanna Moodie were both accepted for publication. She never looked back.

Shields published more than half a dozen other books in the 1970s and 1980s, including Happenstance and The Orange Fish.

In 1995, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the Governor General's Award for The Stone Diaries. Other honours included the Orange Prize for Larry's Party and the Order of Canada.

"Books fall out of the public eye. So I don't have a sense of leaving anything permanent. ... Naturally I like to write books that people enjoy reading, but the literary legacy, no, it's very unimportant to me."

Shields is survived by her husband Don and five children.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Shields' memory can be sent to:

The Winnipeg Public Library Millennium Fund 251 Donald Street, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 3P5 (204) 986-6415

And:

The Inez Sellgren Bursary at the University of Winnipeg Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9 (204) 786-9123 or (204) 269-6722.