News Releases - 2002
The Canada Council for the Arts announces finalists for the 2002 Governor General’s Literary Awards
Ottawa, 21 October 2002 - The Canada Council for the Arts announced today the names of the finalists for the 2002 Governor General’s Literary Awards, in English and in French, in the categories of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, children’s literature (text and illustration) and translation.
The names of the finalists and the titles of their works are listed below, together with the peer assessment committees’ citations for each work. The names of the 42 members comprising the 14 peer assessment committees (seven English, seven French) are listed at the conclusion of this release.
The Canada Council for the Arts funds, administers and promotes the Governor General’s Literary Awards, worth $15,000 each. The publisher of each winning book will receive $3,000 to support promotional activities. For the first time, non-winning finalists will each receive $1,000 in recognition of their selection as finalists, bringing the total value of the Awards to more than $300,000.
The winners will be announced at simultaneous news conferences in Toronto and Montreal on Tuesday, November 12 at 10 a.m. Their names will also be available on the Canada Council web site at www.canadacouncil.ca as of 10 a.m. EST.
The Toronto news conference will take place at Glenn Gould Studio, Canadian Broadcasting Centre, 250 Front St. W., Toronto. The winners in each category will be announced by Shirley L. Thomson, Director of the Canada Council for the Arts, and the English-language laureates will each make a short statement.
The Montreal news conference will take place in the Café Hydro-Québec of the Monument National, 1182 Boulevard Saint-Laurent, Montreal. The winners in each category will be announced by
Jean-Louis Roux, Chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts, and the French-language laureates will each make a short statement.
The laureates will be available for media interviews (in-person and by telephone) immediately following the news conferences in Toronto and Montreal.
The 2002 Awards will be presented at Rideau Hall (the residence of the Governor General of Canada in Ottawa) by Her Excellency the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada on Tuesday, November 19 at 4 p.m. Media representatives wishing to cover the ceremony should contact Melanie Kwong at the Rideau Hall Press Office, (613) 993-8157. A reception and dinner in honour of the laureates will be held that evening (by invitation only).
"The excitement, the quality of literature today in Canada is what strikes me in seeing the list of the finalists," said the Governor General. "To be surprised and gratified by the writing we are seeing now is a great gift to us all."
Jean-Louis Roux, Chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts, said he was particularly impressed by the fact that 46 of the 68 finalists are receiving nominations for the first time. "The list of finalists is a testament to both the excellence and the diversity of Canadian writing today. They range in age from under 30 to over 70, include both established authors and rising stars, and come from a wide range of regions, cultural backgrounds and literary traditions."
"For the past 16 years, BMO Financial Group has been involved in the recognition and support of Canadian literature through our sponsorship of the Governor General’s Literary Awards," said
L. Jacques Ménard, Chairman, BMO Nesbitt Burns, and President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec. "We are proud to join with the Canada Council for the Arts in congratulating the finalists and celebrating their outstanding contribution to Canadian writing, illustration and translation."
For the 11th consecutive year, the National Library of Canada will invite all the winners to read from their works at a gala reading on Wednesday, November 20 at 7:30 p.m. The Canada Council wishes to thank BMO Financial Group, the National Library of Canada and the Fairmont Château Laurier - the official hotel of the Governor General’s Literary Awards - for their support.
English-language finalists
Fiction
David Bergen, Winnipeg, for The Case of Lena S.
(McClelland & Stewart; distributed by Random House of Canada) (ISBN 0-7710-1189-X)
The Case of Lena S. is the moving story of an adolescent boy’s love for a suicidal classmate. Bergen’s psychological portraits are accurate and passionately observed.
Ann Ireland, Toronto, for Exile
(Simon & Pierre / Dundurn Press; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 1-55002-400-0)
Exile is a sardonic and psychologically acute tale of a Latin American poet-refugee whose encounter with his Canadian hosts is full of mutual misunderstanding. Ireland’s prose is intelligent, witty and subversive.
Wayne Johnston, Toronto, for The Navigator of New York
(Alfred A. Knopf Canada; distributed by Random House of Canada) (ISBN 0-676-97532-1)
An orphaned boy from Newfoundland discovers the secrets of his past in the context of the race for the Pole. A novel of grand scope, moods, landscapes; a spellbinding tale.
Gloria Sawai, Edmonton, for A Song for Nettie Johnson
(Coteau Books; distributed by Fitzhenry & Whiteside) (ISBN 1-55050-187-9)
A Song for Nettie Johnson is a profoundly light-filled collection of short stories set on the Prairies and peopled with holy sinners, visionaries, children and so-called ordinary folk. The power of grace illuminates her world.
Carol Shields, Victoria, for Unless
(Random House Canada; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 0-679-31179-3)
Unless is a poignant and finally redemptive story of how loss permeates ordinary life. Shields’ prose is note-perfect: wry, intelligent and emotionally resonant.
Poetry
Tammy Armstrong, Vancouver, for Bogman’s Music
(Anvil Press; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 1-895636-37-X)
This collection of lyric poetry is a startlingly beautiful debut, both exhilaratingly personable and incandescently detailed in its imagery. This work offers an astonishingly deft vision of natural and human environments, and experiences passionately lived.
Colin Browne, Vancouver, for Ground Water
(Talonbooks; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88922-465-X)
A highly innovative, encyclopedic investigation of the intersections between family history and the history of imperial conquest in the West, Ground Water traces the spiritual fall-out of the sacrifice of sons to war. Sensuous, firmly located on the West Coast yet embracing World War I, Browne’s work fuses lyric to document to narrative with a remarkable wealth of cultural referencing.
Kathy Mac, Sambro Head, NS, for Nail Builders Plan for Strength and Growth
(Roseway Publishing; distributed by Fernwood Books) (ISBN 1-896496-33-4)
This book of poetry moves suavely and boldly between the poles of lyric voice and experimental format. Both exquisite in effect and adventurous in style, this work refashions traditional structures of poetry by charging them with a probing, questioning, restless energy.
Roy Miki, Vancouver, for Surrender
(The Mercury Press; distributed by Fraser Direct) (ISBN 1-55128-095-7)
Formally inventive, Surrender’s taut reportage combines lyricism with document at the powerful nexus of the biographical confronting authoritarian borders. Roy Miki applies avant-garde poetics to the social and personal consequences of oppression, and remembers to sing.
Erin Mouré, Montreal, for O Cidadán
(House of Anansi Press; distributed by Publishers Group Canada) (ISBN 0-88784-674-2)
In book-length sequences, Erin Mouré pursues the word citizen in all its embodied meanings. Skillfully combining the technique of lyric poem, collage, translation, geometrical forms and abstract thought, O Cidadán catalogues the politics of communicating, negotiating, and imagining the language of belonging as well as exposing the language of exclusion.
Drama
Claudia Dey, Toronto, for The Gwendolyn Poems
(Playwrights Canada Press; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 0-88754-630-7)
The unhappy life and turbulent times of iconic Canadian poet Gwendolyn MacEwen and her obsessive need to create a national mythology. As ambitious as its subject, The Gwendolyn Poems vibrates with language that is at times beautiful, at times brutal - and always theatrical.
Lorena Gale, Vancouver, for Je me souviens
(Talonbooks; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88922-453-6)
An evocative, sensitive memoir of growing up African-Canadian in Quebec. By turns touching, funny and thought-provoking, this dramatic monologue poses difficult questions about community, belonging and identity.
Kevin Kerr, Vancouver, for Unity (1918)
(Talonbooks; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88922-461-7)
An epic reconstruction of the last days of Unity, Saskatchewan, caught in the grip of the 1918 flu epidemic. Working on a broad canvas, Kerr rises brilliantly to the occasion, deftly interweaving the stories of a group of characters whose dreams, fears, heartaches and humour are deeply felt and fully realized.
Michael Lewis MacLennan, Toronto, for The Shooting Stage
(Playwrights Canada Press; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 0-88754-640-4)
Set against the charged background of an obscenity trial, this penetrating examination of youth, sexuality and the power of images is unflinching in its honesty.
Nonfiction
Carolyn Abraham, Toronto, for Possessing Genius: The Bizarre Odyssey of Einstein’s Brain
(Penguin Books Canada; distributed by Canbook Distribution Services) (ISBN 0-670-89221-1) Carolyn Abraham set herself the almost impossible task of tracing the odyssey of Albert Einstein’s brain over half a century while exploring the developments in neurological science. Her book, while remaining firmly grounded in science, takes on the complexity of a novel as she delves into the life of the Quaker pathologist Dr. Thomas Harvey’s possession of the brain of a genius. Exhaustive legwork combines with clear writing to produce a triumph of the genre.
Jill Frayne, Powassen, Ontario, for Starting Out in the Afternoon: A Mid-Life Journey into Wild Land
(Random House Canada; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 0-679-31119-X)
Jill Frayne takes off in her middle age to drive alone westward to Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) and what she hopes will be a new life. Her "woman-in-landscape" combines acute and lyrical observation of the natural world with a ruminative first person narrative that is never self-indulgent. The endless inventiveness of her descriptive language is exhilarating, as she takes her readers on an inward and outward journey towards a kind of peace.
Stephen Henighan, Guelph, Ontario, for When Words Deny the World: The Reshaping of Canadian Writing
(The Porcupine’s Quill; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88984-240-X)
These are eccentric but impassioned essays about a big subject: is Canadian literature possible after the Free Trade Agreement? Henighan is refreshingly skeptical and revisionist about CanLit’s sacred cows, and in a timely rage against best-sellerism, Toronto-centrism and inflated reputations. He represents a new generation of Canadian critic in the era of globalization, and this is necessary writing.
Don McKay, Victoria, for Vis à Vis: Fieldnotes on Poetry and Wilderness
(Gaspereau Press; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 1-894031-51-2 (bound);
ISBN 1-894031-50-4 (paperback))
Through a handful of short essays about subjects as simple as yard sales, birds and canoes, Don McKay poses potent questions about ownership, language, knowledge and wilderness. A densely packed yet delightfully humorous tour de force that sets a Canadian highwater mark for the personal essay.
Andrew Nikiforuk, Calgary, for Saboteurs: Wiebo Ludwig’s War Against Big Oil
(Macfarlane Walter & Ross; distributed by Random House of Canada) (ISBN 1-55199-053-9)
A badly needed corrective to the public image of Wiebo Ludwig as crackpot and religious fanatic. Andrew Nikiforuk builds a quiet but extremely powerful case against the oil patch with careful research and an open-minded approach to an explosive story. A book of overwhelming importance to all Canadians.
Children’s Literature - Text
Martha Brooks, Winnipeg, for True Confessions of a Heartless Girl
(Groundwood Books / Douglas & McIntyre; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 0-88899-476-1)
In this elegant novel Martha Brooks weaves together the lives of the seemingly ordinary people of Pembina Lake with that of Noreen, a surly, obstreperous 17-year-old. With delicacy, Brooks reveals the inner turmoil of these very real characters and how Noreen acts as a catalyst to rearrange the order of things.
Alan Cumyn, Ottawa, for The Secret Life of Owen Skye
(Groundwood Books / Douglas & McIntyre; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 0-88899-506-7 (bound); ISBN 0-88899-517-2 (paperback))
In the course of one year Owen Skye, brave explorer, middle brother and philosopher, faces many challenges - the threat of the slimy Bog Man, accidental arson and how to declare his love for the shining Sylvia. A buoyant story about loyalty, self-assurance and mutability, this novel exuberantly captures the inner logic of a boy’s imagination.
Deborah Ellis, Toronto, for Parvana’s Journey
(Groundwood Books / Douglas & McIntyre; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 0-88899-514-8 (bound); ISBN 0-88899-519-9 (paperback))
In this gripping survival story a young Afghan girl, her family fractured by war, undertakes a dangerous and uncertain journey to find her mother and siblings. In the course of her travels she joins forces with three other abandoned children and together they face starvation, bombing and despair. A compelling contemporary story about the resilience of the human spirit in the face of a world in disintegration.
John Lekich, Vancouver, for The Losers’ Club
(Annick Press; distributed by Firefly Books) (ISBN 1-55037-753-1 (bound);
ISBN 1-55037-752-3 (paperback))
In his first novel for young readers, John Lekich creates a vibrant array of characters, some inside and some outside The Losers’ Club. The narrator, Alex Sherwood, helps prove to his friends and the world that the losers are often winners in disguise. This thoroughly refreshing novel is hilarious and insightful. It provides a surprise in every chapter.
Karen Levine, Toronto, for Hana’s Suitcase
(Second Story Press; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 1-896764-55-X)
Hana’s Suitcase is the extraordinary story of a young Japanese woman, Fumiko, who is compelled to discover the truth behind an artifact from the Holocaust. The story of Fumiko’s search intertwines with the story of Hana Brady, the young girl from Czechoslovakia whose life ended tragically in Auschwitz. Heartbreaking though this story is, it also whispers of hope as an old inert suitcase is connected to the living vibrant child Hana, and as the hearts of Japanese children are linked to her.
Children’s Literature - Illustration
Brian Deines, Toronto, for Dragonfly Kites/pimihákanisa, text in English and Cree by Tomson Highway
(HarperCollins Canada; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 0-00-225527-8)
The impressionist paintings evoke the slowed pace and dreamlike quality of Cree family life on a northern Manitoba lake. This book celebrates the freedom of children in nature and the imagination that arises from children being left alone and to their own devices. Deines’ illustrations in oil are simple and gentle, yet rich, and capture the sensitivity of the text.
Wallace Edwards, Toronto, for Alphabeasts, text by Wallace Edwards
(Kids Can Press; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 1-55337-386-3)
Curious and witty, sophisticated and highly original in approach, these illustrations are precisely rendered in watercolour and pencil crayon. Unanswered questions involve the reader and open the door to his or her imagination; every detail has its place and it is a challenge to discern meanings from the symbols Edwards incorporates with a childlike love of rich detail.
Marie-Louise Gay, Montreal, for Stella, Fairy of the Forest, text by Marie-Louise Gay
(Groundwood Books / Douglas & McIntyre; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 0-88899-448-6)
Marie-Louise Gay’s use of watercolour with pencil exudes airiness and freedom. The big questions of Simon and Stella’s world are balanced by Marie-Louise Gay’s whimsical illustrations. In colour, line and form there is a charm and joy to the art.
Rogé (Roger Girard), Montreal, for When Pigs Fly, text by Valerie Coulman
(Lobster Press; distributed by Raincoast Books) (ISBN 1-894222-36-9)
This playful and amusing book grabs a young reader’s attention with bright colours and dynamic design. The bold use of acrylic paint allows Rogé to perfectly illustrate the unshakeable optimism of the story. This is a true marriage of text and image blended seamlessly to make for a very lively experience.
Janie Jaehyun Park, Toronto, for The Tiger and the Dried Persimmon, text by Janie Jaehyun Park
(Groundwood Books / Douglas & McIntyre; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 0-88899-485-0)
Jaehyun Park has successfully created a fresh version of an old Korean folk tale. Her choices of mediums - acrylics and textured gesso ground - combine to create an ancient, Oriental look suitable for the story. This universal tale encompasses rich visual storytelling with a subtle sense of humour.
Translation (French to English)
Sheila Fischman, Montreal, for Twelve Opening Acts
(Talonbooks; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88922-466-8)
English translation of Douze coups de théâtre, by Michel Tremblay (Leméac Éditeur)
Sheila Fischman returns us willingly to the familiar landscape of Michel Tremblay’s early years in Plateau Mont-Royal. She presents a strong, clear voice that brings the author’s charged original book vividly to an English readership.
Linda Gaboriau, Montreal, for Impromptu on Nun’s Island
(Talonbooks; distributed by University of Toronto Press) (ISBN 0-88922-470-6)
English translation of L’État des lieux, by Michel Tremblay (Leméac Éditeur)
Linda Gaboriau possesses an excellent sense of rhythm, and an ear for the issues of class inherent in all speech. Her love and knowledge of the stage shine through in this well-paced translation.
Liedewy Hawke, North York, Ontario, for The Milky Way
(Simon & Pierre / Dundurn Press; distributed by University of Toronto Press)
(ISBN 1-55002-383-7)
English translation of La Voie lactée, by Louise Dupré (XYZ éditeur)
With an assured hand, Liedewy Hawke brings to us Louise Dupré’ s award-winning novel. She deftly conveys the journey of a troubled woman on the uncertain road to redemption.
Lazer Lederhendler, Montreal, for Larry Volt
(XYZ Publishing; distributed by Fitzhenry & Whiteside) (ISBN 0-9688166-4-9)
English translation of Larry Volt, by Pierre Tourangeau (XYZ éditeur)
Lazer Lederhendler displays exceptional energy and chance-taking in his work. Here is a high-wire act accomplished with vigour and sureness.
Nigel Spencer, Fleurimont, Quebec, for Thunder and Light
(House of Anansi Press; distributed by Raincoast Books) (ISBN 0-88784-176-7)
English translation of Dans la foudre et la lumière, by Marie-Claire Blais (Les Éditions du Boréal)
Nigel Spencer becomes our guide to the labyrinth of Marie-Claire Blais’ fictional world. In so doing, the translator displays the same spirit of invention as the author.
French-language finalists
Fiction
Guy Demers, Sept-Îles, Quebec, for L’intime
(XYZ éditeur; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-89261-322-1)
L’intime is a long fantasy, filled with humour and learning, that looks at the redemptive power of art. An exhilarating and masterfully-written novel that is a hymn to life and the magic of invention.
Monique LaRue, Montreal, for La Gloire de Cassiodore
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-7646-0153-0)
This novel is more than a portrait of college life - it reconstitutes life in all its burgeoning diversity. As well, it presents a moral and intellectual tale that reaches across the centuries to Cassiodore, a man of letters in ancient Rome. This is an important book at the dawn of the millennium - solidly constructed and skilfully written.
Monique Proulx, Montreal, for Le cœur est un muscle involontaire
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-7646-0181-6)
This novel, which plays like a detective story without a culprit, is both a tale of learning and of filial love. The superbly-written text showcases literature and is a vibrant tribute to its practitioners. We sense an immense pleasure in writing with this author, who distills the simplicity of joy.
Hélène Vachon, Quebec City, for La Tête ailleurs
(Éditions Québec Amérique; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-7644-0146-9)
Sensitive and fragile, a quest in writing. In a novel of incisive dialogue, Hélène Vachon uses a delicate touch to present the confusion and tenacity of Alison, a woman trying to understand a world in which she feels like a total stranger. Vachon has a powerful voice - this is a book to be read and reread.
Pierre Yergeau, Ville-des-Laurentides, Quebec, for La désertion
(Les éditions de L’instant même; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-89502-142-2)
Pierre Yergeau has a style that is unique and incomparable in our literature. This magician of the written word gives us a flamboyant portrait of all the various characters of an Abitibi mythology.
Poetry
Anne-Marie Alonzo, Laval, Quebec, for …et la nuit
(Éditions Trois; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-89516-023-6)
This oration in moving memory of the mother unfurls in the lyrical mode of a fitful flood of language, in a piercing internal monologue. The voice of Anne-Marie Alonzo, wavering here between the lamentation of mourning - that "state of loss" - and a hymn to lost life, finds somber accents of emotion in the fragmentation of form.
Robert Dickson, Sudbury, Ontario, for Humains paysages en temps de paix relative
(Éditions Prise de parole; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-89423-144-X)
In this journal of intimate poetry, emotion lies just below the surface in every word. Like a hologram, the poems contain all the strata of everyday life - its questions, anxieties and emotions. The writing reinvents life, to a jazz beat.
René Lapierre, Saint-Antoine-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, for Piano
(Éditions les Herbes rouges; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-89419-191-X)
Between the scholarly tone of biblical reference and the vibrant atmosphere of the American scene, poetry, playing with the borders between genres, allies itself with fiction. The language is irrigated by reality, embedded in the living body of the words. The result is that marvelous music of the night that is sometimes played piano forte.
Paul-Marie Lapointe, Saint-Sauveur-des-Monts, Quebec, for Espèces fragiles
(Éditions de l’Hexagone; distributed by Les messageries ADP) (ISBN 2-89006-682-7)
Espèces fragiles appears as the sum of the reality in which we ask all the essential questions about injustice, death and the future of the planet. Both serious and playful, the poet brings out the obscure links between the most vulnerable beings and the fate of all humanity.
Louise Warren, Saint-Alphonse-Rodriguez, Quebec, for La lumière, l’arbre, le trait
(Éditions de l’Hexagone; distributed by Les messageries ADP) (ISBN 2-89006-669-X)
How does a poem come forth, and how do we move toward it? The impulse and desire that lie behind the birth of a poem and the task of writing are the subjects broached in this collection by Louise Warren. The superbly-mastered writing penetrates with accuracy and sensitivity the mystery of poetic inspiration by evoking love, childbirth and death.
Drama
Daniel Danis, Falardeau, Quebec, for Le Langue-à-Langue des chiens de roche
(L’Arche Éditeur; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 2-85181-498-2)
On the shore, between the howling dogs and the raging night, a wind of humanity blows over the inhabitants of a fictitious island in the St. Lawrence. In precise, poetic language, Daniel Danis depicts a world that emerges from the soil and the rock and struggles to love and be loved.
Carole Fréchette, Montreal, for Jean et Béatrice
(Leméac Éditeur/Actes Sud; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-7609-2255-3)
Jean et Béatrice takes place in the confines of a large, almost-empty room on the 33rd floor of an apartment building. Responding to a classified ad, Jean undertakes to seduce Béatrice. The game of seduction turns into a trap, their meeting becomes a duel where each explodes the truth of the other. In this text, Carole Fréchette shows an admirable mastery of the language of the heart, secret desires and repressed confidence.
Wajdi Mouawad, Montreal, for Rêves
(Leméac Éditeur/Actes Sud; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-7609-2226-X)
Willem rents a hotel room and spends the night writing. Rêves digs down where it hurts, flays and digs deeper still until a spark is released: love lying side by side with pain.
Reynald Robinson, Montreal, for L’Hôtel des Horizons
(Dramaturges Éditeurs; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-922182-42-8)
In a deserted hotel in a small Gaspé village are found two sisters and the man they loved. Steven appears on the scene - a young man who will become the revealer of their secret dramas. L’Hôtel des Horizons is a work of scathing, harsh humour.
Pierre-Michel Tremblay, Montreal, for Le rire de la mer
(Lanctôt éditeur; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-89485-203-7)
Le rire de la mer talks about our aptitude, in spite of death, to imbue our existence with joy. Pierre-Michel Tremblay develops this idea by following the journey of Pénélope Bouchard, who, stricken with cancer, decides to travel the world before she dies. Le rire de la mer is a comedy touched with anguish; a work that successfully blends irony, satire and tenderness.
Nonfiction
Judith Lavoie, Montreal, for Mark Twain et la parole noire
(Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal; distributed by Fides) (ISBN 2-7606-1799-8)
This is a thorough analysis of the original work Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, and its French translations. The author proposes new directions in translation, introducing the notion of "créolité." "Creolized French as a translation option for Black English is worth further exploration," she says. This is a fascinating voice that ultimately leads to a full retranslation of Twain’s novel.
Claude Lévesque, Montreal, for Par-delà le masculin et le féminin
(Flammarion : Aubier; distributed by Socadis) (ISBN 2-7007-2422-4)
This is an important work that is timely and necessary. A philosopher bravely reopens the question of masculine and feminine in psychoanalysis. He then examines a philosophical and literary corpus: Derrida, Blanchot, Bataille. "The passion of the unknown where we see, not without dread, what goes beyond discourse." In short, a powerful and demanding reflection in clear, vigorous writing.
Lucie K. Morisset, Quebec City, for La mémoire du paysage. Histoire de la forme urbaine d’un centre-ville : Saint-Roch, Québec
(Les Presses de l’Université Laval; distributed by Distribution de livres Univers) (ISBN 2-7637-7724-4)
This story of the genesis of a town traces in masterful fashion the history of a downtown area, Saint-Roch, in Quebec City. It proposes an in-depth, renewed examination of the urban landscape, including its sociology and topology. The work is well-documented, well-illustrated and rigorous, written in supple, lovely language.
Élisabeth Nardout-Lafarge, Montreal, for Réjean Ducharme : une poétique du débris
(Éditions Fides; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 2-7621-2251-1)
An excellent exploration of the fiction of Réjean Ducharme, originating in the author’s passionate discovery of Ducharme’s work. A first-class literary analysis coupled with beautiful writing, it incites us to read and reread Ducharme.
Émile Ollivier, Montreal, for Repérages
(Leméac Éditeur; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-7609-6054-4)
Between identity, exile, territory and language, this passionate itinerary and fraternal, convivial work leads the author from his native Haiti to Quebec. The journey of a militant, a citizen, a writer. "I am not alone, I am a multiplicity," he writes. A challenge that has been marvelously met, with strong, sensitive writing.
Children’s Literature - Text
Dominique Demers, Montreal, for Ta voix dans la nuit
(Éditions Québec Amérique; distributed by Diffusion Prologue) (ISBN 2-7644-0122-1)
In this novel, one of the most contemporary by Dominique Demers, the main character, Fanny, 16 years old, is a victim of bullying at school. While the verve and audacity of Edmond Rostand inspire Fanny, the passionate dreams of the handsome Gabriel have her walking on air.
François Gravel, Montreal, for David et la maison de la sorcière
(Dominique et compagnie/Les éditions Héritage; distributed by Les Messageries ADP)
(ISBN 2-89512-233-4)
In the course of this touching novel by François Gravel, young David discovers that adults too can be afraid, and that a charming witch can transform one’s life.
Sylvain Meunier, Longueuil, Quebec, for Le seul ami
(Les éditions de la courte échelle; distributed by Québec-Livres) (ISBN 2-89021-535-0)
This moving novel by Sylvain Meunier examines the limits of friendship: Is it possible to be someone’s only friend?
Pierre Roy, Rock Forest, Quebec, for Une tonne de patates!
(Les éditions Hurtubise HMH; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 2-89428-566-3)
In his edifying book Pierre Roy shows us that there was once a time when teaching was virtually an act of heroism.
Hélène Vachon, Quebec City, for L’oiseau de passage
(Dominique et compagnie/Les éditions Héritage; distributed by Les Messageries ADP)
(ISBN 2-89512-206-7)
In this admirable story about the problems of young people in the school environment, Hélène Vachon touches her readers deeply.
Children’s Literature - Illustration
Philippe Béha, Montreal, for La reine rouge, text by Philippe Béha
(Les éditions Les 400 coups; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-921620-83-9)
The colour red explodes with energy, power and vitality. On every page, life bursts out like a fireworks display. The red queen roars power and colour with a contagious, galloping expressiveness.
Jean-Marie Benoit, Montreal, for Le voyage à l’envers, text by Marie-Danielle Croteau
(Les éditions Les 400 coups; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-89540-043-1)
What could be more appropriate to evoke the youth of the great Picasso than to present us with these intense illustrations, veritable paintings that resonate with the colours of Spain. Olé!
Guy England, Montreal, for L’ami perdu, text by Gilles Tibo
(Les éditions Les 400 coups; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-89540-013-X)
With a touch of a magic wand, inanimate material comes to life and runs across the page in a joyful noise of mechanics. The impossible takes place in colourful, fantastic atmospheres.
Luc Melanson, Laval, Quebec, for Le grand voyage de Monsieur, text by Gilles Tibo
(Dominique et compagnie/Les éditions Héritage; distributed by Les messageries ADP)
(ISBN 2-89512-191-5 (bound) / ISBN 2-89512-189-3 (paperback))
The melancholy and poetry of the images work well to translate the theme of a father in mourning and a war orphan. At the same time, a sympathetic sweetness emerges.
Mylène Pratt, Montreal, for Décroche-moi la lune, text by Marie-Francine Hébert
(Dominique et compagnie/Les éditions Héritage; distributed by Les messageries ADP)
(ISBN 2-89512-192-3 (bound) / ISBN 2-89512-190-7 (paperback))
With her mischievous illustrations and ability to evoke an atmosphere with a few strokes of the brush, this artist tells us a story of tenderness between a father and son.
Translation (English to French)
Florence Bernard, Le Pecq, France, for F. R. Scott: une vie
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-7646-0146-8)
French translation of A Life of F. R. Scott: The Politics of the Imagination by Sandra Djwa
(McClelland & Stewart)
This impressive portrait of Frank Scott, a great jurist, renowned poet, translator of Quebec poetry and fervent advocate of rights and freedoms, has found a faithful and exemplary interpreter in Florence Bernard. In subtle language that always strikes the right chord and operates in several registers, F. R. Scott: une vie evokes the highlights of a rich and fruitful career that affected the trajectory of contemporary Quebec and Canada.
Jean Paré, Montreal, for La Révolution des droits
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-7646-0125-5)
French translation of The Rights Revolution by Michael Ignatieff (House of Anansi Press)
To render the complexity of ideas without stumbling over the pitfalls of the text, the translator has performed an admirable work of assimilation, transposition and honing. Author and reader are both well served.
Paule Pierre (Paule Noyart), Bromont, Quebec, for Histoire universelle de la chasteté et du célibat
(Éditions Fides; distributed by the publisher) (ISBN 2-7621-2190-6)
French translation of A History of Celibacy by Elizabeth Abbott (HarperCollins Canada)
Paule Pierre has elaborated on a controversial subject with very agreeable finesse and irony. Exemplary syntactical elegance - a sign of virtuosity - provides the reader with constant enjoyment.
Carole Sadelain, Montreal, for La Nature des économies
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 2-7646-0124-7)
French translation of The Nature of Economies by Jane Jacobs (Random House Canada)
Carole Sadelain meets the challenge of translation with brilliance. This plea for the integration of nature, human activity and the economy is rendered in sober French with lively dialogues and subtle humour. The inventiveness and the precision of the language stand out.
The Juries
The winners of the Governor General's Literary Awards are chosen by independent peer juries in each category (seven English and seven French), appointed by the Canada Council. The juries, which meet separately, consider all eligible books published between 1 September 2001 and 30 September 2002 for English-language books and between 1 July 2001 and 30 June 2002 for French-language books. This year, a total of 1,439 titles, 820 in the English-language categories and 619 in the French-language categories, were submitted.
English-language Juries
Fiction: Sandra Birdsell, writer (Regina), Douglas Glover, writer, critic (Wilton, N.Y., formerly of southern Ontario), Evelyn Lau, writer (Vancouver)
Poetry: George Elliott Clarke, poet, playwright (Toronto), Nicole B. Markotic, poet, writer (Calgary), Daphne Marlatt, poet, novelist (Vancouver)
Drama: Marie Clements, playwright, actor (Vanvouver), Clem Martini, writer, professor of theatre (Calgary), Jason Sherman, playwright (Toronto)
Nonfiction: Myrna Kostash, writer (Edmonton), Andreas Schroeder, writer (Roberts Creek, British Columbia), Jack Todd, writer, journalist (Montreal)
Children’s Literature - Text: Lesley Choyce, writer, professor (Lawrencetown Beach, Nova Scotia), Sarah Ellis, writer (Vancouver), Rachna Gilmore, writer (Orleans, Ontario)
Children’s Literature - Illustration: Barbara Reid, illustrator (Toronto), Ludmilla Zeman, writer, illustrator (Montreal), Werner Zimmerman, writer, illustrator (Lions Head, Ontario)
Translation: Wayne Grady, writer (Athens, Ontario), David Homel, writer, translator (Montreal), Susan Ouriou, translator, writer (Calgary)
French-language Juries
Fiction: Jean Pierre Girard, writer, essayist (Joliette, Quebec), Rachel Leclerc, writer, poet (Montreal), Emile Ollivier, sociologist, writer, essayist (Montreal)
Poetry: Louise Desjardins, poet, writer (Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec), Jocelyne Felx, poet, critic (Kirkland, Quebec), Paul Chanel Malenfant, writer, academic (Rimouski, Quebec)
Drama: Abla Farhoud, playwright, writer (Montreal), Jean-Cléo Godin, critic, academic (Montreal), Stefan Psenak, writer, editor (Aylmer, Quebec)
Nonfiction: Richard Poulin, writer, academic (Ottawa), Régine Robin, writer, academic (Montreal), Chantal Saint-Jarre, writer, psychoanalyst, academic (Montreal)
Children’s Literature - Text: Cécile Cloutier, writer, professor (Neuville, Quebec), Michel Noël, ethnologist, writer, cultural development coordinator (Lévis, Quebec), Chantal Vaillancourt, children’s literature specialist (Montreal and Oud-Heverlee, Belgium)
Children’s Literature - Illustration: Robert Freynet, painter, illustrator (Sainte-Anne-des-Chênes, Manitoba), Marie Lafrance, illustrator (Montreal), Mireille Levert, illustrator (Montreal)
Translation : Richard Giguère, literature professor (Sherbrooke), Michel Saint-Germain, translator, journalist, professor (Montreal), Micheline Sainte-Marie, translator (Montreal)
For more information about the awards, contact Joanne-Larocque-Poirier at 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5576.
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Interviews with authors: Ontario, Atlantic Provinces, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Territories
Diane Hargrave
(416) 467-9954
dhprbks@interlog.com
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Rita Schaffer
(514) 937-1039
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Margaret MacKinnon-Cash
(604) 733-9447
Interviews with authors: Alberta:
Sheri Lee Moshansky
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