2008 Finalists: French-language
View English-language finalists
Fiction
Non-fiction
Poetry
Drama
Children’s Literature - text
Children’s Literature - illustration
Translation - English to French
Jean-François Beauchemin, Sainte-Anne-des-Lacs (Quebec), Ceci est mon corps.
(Québec Amérique; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-7644-0594-9)
Ceci est mon corps is a book of great beauty. The language is concise and poetic, and the development is meticulous. A deep serenity emerges from this account. Tackling a subject like this requires courage as well as confidence in one's own abilities. Jean-François Beauchemin succeeds, giving us a portrait of a human, modern Jesus.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Marie-Claire Blais, Westmount (Quebec), Naissance de Rebecca à l'ère des tourments. (Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-7646-0578-3)
Marie-Claire Blais gives us a powerful song that overlays and complements the chaos of our time. Her keen observation of human beings shows that despite all evidence to the contrary, they still have the capacity for survival, modulation and the invention of a world that is learning to be. A wonderfully woven story that unfolds like the triumph of literature over the torments of our century.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Guillaume Corbeil, Montreal, L'art de la fugue.
(L'instant même; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-89502-253-4) Guillaume Corbeil's stories play out against a backdrop of their characters' uncertainties, the strangeness of their settings, and the sublime lightness of his writing. Together they carry us with the force and the rhythm of an ironic, spirited fugue that quite literally creates a world.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Monique Proulx, Montreal, Champagne.
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-7646-0581-3)
Champagne is a novel that brilliantly captures and holds our attention from start to finish. Human vicissitudes are interwoven with those of plants and animals to form a Laurentian landscape that is organic, magnificent and disturbing. The reader immerses himself with grateful delight.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Jean-Pierre Trépanier, Rawdon (Quebec), Colomia. (Les Éditions Sémaphore; distributed by Les Éditions Sémaphore) (ISBN 978-2-923107-06-6)
Perhaps no one has ever scaled the walls of a prison with such clear-sighted compassion. In a tone that always rings true and a style that carries the reader along, Colomia is both a race against death and a subtle shift toward the rebuffed tenderness that lies at the heart of violence.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Adèle Lauzon, Montreal, Pas si tranquille.
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-7646-0593-6)
This book is the difficult, solitary and moving account of a female journalist who worked in Quebec and internationally in the days of the Quiet Revolution and the Cuban and Algerian revolutions, before the emergence of feminism. The evocation of her meetings with the principal politicians and writers of the time, as well as the finesse of her analyses, reveal a major writer.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Georges Leroux, Montreal, Partita pour Glenn Gould : musique et forme de vie.
(Les Presses de l'Université de Montréal; distributed by Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-7606-2061-2)
Philosopher Georges Leroux combines his admiration for the art of Glenn Gould with his familiarity with biography and the precocious, single-minded devotion of Gould to his instrument and to music. This book invites the reader to an important reflection upon genius, the sovereignty of the artist, and a pianist who revolutionized the practice of music.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
André Major, Montreal, L'esprit vagabond.
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-7646-0531-8)
Here is the work of a major figure in Quebec literature who strives for nothing less than absolute sincerity for himself and his readers. André Major shares his multiple, eclectic and perspicacious readings, his intimacy with nature, his annoyance with linguistic and intellectual laziness and the difficulty of living in the present.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Pierre Ouellet, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu (Quebec), Hors-temps : poétique de la posthistoire.
(VLB éditeur; distributed by Les messageries ADP) (ISBN 978-2-89649-037-0) Hors-temps : poétique de la posthistoire by Pierre Ouellet is both a commentary on contemporary currents in poetry and a sharp analysis of their relationship with time, memory, history, identity and otherness. He reveals a profound and original way of thinking that uses literature as the point of departure and point of arrival.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Louise Warren, Saint-Alphonse-de-Rodriguez (Quebec), La forme et le deuil : archives du lac.
(L'Hexagone; distributed by Les messageries ADP) (ISBN 978-2-89006-808-7)
La forme et le deuil is a work of great sensitivity. The author succeeds in touching us with the evocation of her memories and her observations on art and writing. Louise Warren strikes a universal chord in her descriptions that are filled with poetry and feeling.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Steve Auger, Montreal, Le rosier incendiaire. (Éditions d'art Le Sabord; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-922685-59-6)
With Le rosier incendiaire, poetry's newest pyromaniac has arrived. Between love and death, Steve Auger proposes a world filled with dreams and anguish in language that is rebellious and beautiful, straying far from the paths of convention. Electrifying and astonishing poetry.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
François Charron, Montreal, Nous aurons tout vécu.
(Écrits des Forges; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-89645-075-6)
In Nous aurons tout vécu, François Charron presents a deeply moving song borne by phrases that unfurl in vast waves of incantation, like lamentations gathered up and hurled into the absurdity of the world. With its profound and powerful breadth, this collection evokes emotions that are both intimate and universal.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Henri Chassé, Montreal, Morceaux de tempête.
(Écrits des Forges; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-89645-082-4)
From solitude to love, this collection of questioning and quest takes us on a journey where images alternate between darkness and light. A renewed, concise language highlights the emotions the author evokes so skilfully. The style and poetic process of Henri Chassé culminate in a reflection that is akin to a rebirth.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Michel Pleau, Quebec City, La lenteur du monde.
(Les Éditions David; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-89597-081-1)
With La lenteur du monde, Michel Pleau invites us to a celebration of the marvellous. In a collection brushed with nostalgia, he gently awakens us to the simple gestures of childhood. Attentive to his worlds, he invites us to go back to the essentials, to natural elements, innocence and light, in order to magnify the beauty of the universe.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Michel A. Thérien, Ottawa, Du vertige et de l'espoir: Carnets africains
(Les Éditions David; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-89597-086-6)
In limpid language, Michel A. Thérien invites us not only on an initiatory voyage to his mythical Africa, but also speaks to us of the Harmattan and of métissage, echoing Senghor and Césaire. When he takes on the airs of a musician, it is to sing to us the intoxicating promises of humanity.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Yvan Bienvenue, Montreal, La vie continue. (Dramaturges Éditeurs; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-92218-299-6)
A choral, political work, sensitive and human, of a truncated fatality that freezes time and goes straight to the essential.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Carole Fréchette, Montreal, Serial Killer et autres pièces courtes. (Leméac Éditeur / Actes Sud; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-7609-2758-2)
An exercise in style for four voices. An experiment in time and space that breaks from the codes of dramatic representation. A series of snapshots of the invisible.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Catherine Mavrikakis, Montreal, Omaha Beach.
(Éditions Héliotrope; distributed by Gallimard/Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-923511-10-8)
A hypnotic ballad for survivors in a military cemetery. Theatre for the dead, a ceremony of ghosts. The anthropology of the Apocalypse.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Wajdi Mouawad, Montreal, Ottawa, Le soleil ni la mort ne peuvent se regarder en face. (Leméac Éditeur / Actes Sud; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-7609-2783-4)
A text of a musically exceptional poetry, a veritable tragedy upon tragedy that visits the great myths: an agora of broken heroes, a labyrinth of errors.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Jennifer Tremblay, Sorel (Quebec), La liste. (Les Éditions de la Bagnole; distributed by ERPI-Diffusion du Livre Mirabel) (ISBN 978-2-923342-19-1)
A play that explodes in the mind. Theatre of the destruction of theatre, a new voice.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Camille Bouchard, Saint-Marcel-de-l'Islet (Quebec), Trente-neuf. (Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-7646-0590-5)
This novel vividly recreates the early days of Spain's colonization of the Americas. A poignant tale told by two voices, the confrontation of two worlds: a Spanish ship's boy and a young Amerindian. A powerful book of great historical authenticity that sheds fascinating light on this period.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Sylvie Desrosiers, Longueuil (Quebec), Les trois lieues. (Les éditions de la courte échelle; distributed by Diffusion du livre Mirabel) (ISBN 978-2-89651-067-2)
Les trois lieues is a rich and moving book. Seeking his father in the North, Tom discovers the full extent of his feelings for the man he had judged as a coward. A luminous and human novel that celebrates life.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Charlotte Gingras, Morin-Heights (Quebec), Ophélie. (Les éditions de la courte échelle; distributed by Diffusion du livre Mirabel) (ISBN 978-2-89021-957-1)
Charlotte Gingras, with sensitivity and pitch-perfect tone, gives voice to two young people who are different from the rest — misfits for whom school is all too often an unbearable environment. A novel full of hope where it is possible for the heroes, in their squatted studio, to be saved by dreams, art, writing and, in the end, by tenderness and love.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
François Gravel, Montreal, Sales crapauds. (Québec Amérique; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-7644-0598-7)
François Gravel's novel starts from a wonderful premise: four teenaged fans of the macabre challenge themselves to see who can write the most awful horror story. Sales Crapauds is a reflection on the act and the pleasure of writing. Four highly effective, disturbingly humorous stories pay tribute to the power of the imagination.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Carole Tremblay, Montreal, Fred Poulet enquête sur une chaussette. (Dominique et compagnie, a division of Éditions Héritage; distributed by Les messageries ADP, groupe Sogides) (ISBN 978-2-89512-625-6)
This whodunit about the search for a lost sock is hilarious. A mini-graphic novel of remarkable precision and intelligence. “Theft, flight or kidnapping?” - Fred Poulet's outlandish theories capture, surprise and amuse us from the first to the final deduction. The rhythm and mastery of the storytelling are exceptional.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Philippe Béha, Montreal, Les pays inventés, text by Henriette Major. (Les Éditions Hurtubise HMH; distributed by Les Éditions Hurtubise HMH) (ISBN 978-2-89647-009-9)
There are interior and exterior 'other lands', to be sure. But there are also 'other lands' that are made up of words and pictures brought to life through a child's laughter. Philippe Béha likes to have fun. He juggles with colours, forms and lines, exploring a host of different styles that are always recognizable as his own.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Stéphane Jorisch, Montreal, Un cadeau pour Sophie, text by Gilles Vigneault (La Montagne secrète; distributed by Diffusion Dimedia) (ISBN 978-2-923163-38-3)
The drawings in Un cadeau pour Sophie give us appealing characters full of tenderness. With Stéphane Jorisch we get the sense that he has drawn them from life, like figures in an artist's sketchbook. The fine touches of watercolour and rich textures breathe life into the story, and are imbued with atmosphere, sensitivity and spontaneity.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Marie Lafrance, Montreal, Le sorcier amoureux, text by Mireille Levert. (Dominique et compagnie, a division of Éditions Héritage; distributed by Les messageries ADP, groupe Sogides) (ISBN 978-2-89512-570-6 (bound.) / 978-2-89512-570-9 (pbk))
He's fat, ugly and full of barbs. He can't stand the sound of a piano. Yet the lady in pink with the singing crimson smile has him transfixed with love. Le sorcier amoureux moves from darkness into the light thanks to Marie Lafrance's fluid, luminous illustrations.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Caroline Merola, Montreal, Quand le chat est parti, text by Caroline Merola. (Les éditions de la courte échelle; distributed by Diffusion du livre Mirabel) (ISBN 978-2-89021-942-7 (bound) / 978-2-89021-943-4 (pbk))
Quand le chat est parti draws us into a swirl of dazzling colours where the mice have as much fun as the readers. With her keen sense of movement and her luxurious texturing, Caroline Merola gives us a book that is full of life and laughter.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Janice Nadeau, Montreal, Ma meilleure amie, text by Gilles Tibo. (Québec Amérique; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-7644-0519-2)
Dressed all in black, Death accompanies, listens and comforts like a best friend. Janice Nadeau illustrates it with serenity. She uses a minimum of colours, sometimes blurred, sometimes lightly brushed. Each stroke is full of emotion, tenderness and poetry.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Dominique Bouchard, Ripon (Quebec), Les grands lacs : histoire naturelle d'une région en perpétuelle mutation. (Éditions Fides; distributed by Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-7621-2802-4) French translation of The Great Lakes — The Natural History of a Changing Region by Wayne Grady (Greystone Books, a division of Douglas and MacIntyre / David Suzuki Foundation).
Impeccable work from a terminological and scientific perspective. A translation that is so vast and diverse in its complexity cannot be accomplished without an enormous amount of research. This extensive work is all the more striking for the delicacy, elegance and quiet lyricism of the language.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Claire Chabalier, Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot (Quebec), and Louise Chabalier, Mascouche (Quebec), Tracey en mille morceaux. (Éditions Les Allusifs; distributed by Gallimard/Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-9228-6866-1) French translation of The Tracey Fragments by Maureen Medved (House of Anansi).
Claire Chabalier and Louise Chabalier have taken on the immensely difficult challenge of translating the helpless confusion of an adolescent who expresses herself in choppy, breathless language. The result in French, including the title, is a tour de force in which readers discover, as they follow the short, percussive sentences, the inner journey and delirious ravings of an elusive heroine.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Jean Marc Dalpé, Montreal, Ottawa, Roc & rail: Trains fantômes and Slague : histoire d'un mineur. (Prise de parole; distributed by Prologue) (ISBN 978-2-89423-218-7) French translation of Rock'n Rail: Ghost Trains and Spitting Slag by Mansel Robinson (Thistledown Press).
From a text that sings like an English ballad, the translators have drawn a dialogue created to be heard just as lyrically in French. Drama translation at its finest: words are only a fraction of the feat, as other talents come into play to make the work succeed.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Lori Saint-Martin, Montreal, and Paul Gagné, Montreal, Big Bang. (Éditions Les Allusifs; distributed by Gallimard/Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-9228-6865-4)
French translation of Bang Crunch by Neil Smith (Alfred A. Knopf Canada, a division de Random House of Canada). This translation is a charming and natural rendition of the humour, irony and sarcasm of the original stories. The author's intent shines through in all its spontaneity — convincingly and effortlessly. A captivating theme and surprising style combine to produce a work that is strong and altogether French.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Sophie Voillot, Montreal, Logogryphe. (Éditions Alto; distributed by Socadis) (ISBN 978-2-023550-12-8)
French translation of The Logogryph by Thomas Wharton (Gaspereau Press).
Logogryphe is a work imbued with nostalgia, rendered in subtle and nuanced language, that reflects quite wonderfully the poetic surrealism of the book - an object raised by the author to the ranks of cultural monument. The translator adopts a tone that brings out the haunting impression left by the evanescent characters.
>>Download a larger image of the book cover
Top of page