ESI EDUGYAN WINS THE 2011 SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE

08 Nov 2011

November 8, 2011 (Toronto, Ontario) Esi Edugyan has been named the 2011 winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize for her novel Half-Blood Blues, published by Thomas Allen Publishers. The announcement was made at a black-tie dinner and award ceremony hosted by Jian Ghomeshi, attended by over 500 members of the publishing, media and arts communities. The gala was broadcast live on CBC’s bold, livestreamed on cbc.ca/books, and aired on CBC Television at 11:05 p.m. (11:35 p.m. NT).

The largest annual literary prize in the country, the Scotiabank Giller Prize awards $50,000 to the author of the best Canadian novel or short story collection published in English and $5,000 to each of the finalists. A shortlist of six authors and their books was announced on October 4, 2011. Those finalists were:

The shortlist and ultimate winner were selected by an esteemed jury panel made up of award-winning Canadian writer and 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Annabel Lyon; American author, memoirist and Guggenheim fellow Howard Norman; and acclaimed UK playwright and prize-winning novelist Andrew O’Hagan.

The shortlist was chosen from an unprecedented 143 books submitted for consideration by 55 publishing houses from every region of the country.

Of the winning book, the jury wrote: 

"Imagine Mozart were a black German trumpet player and Salieri a bassist, and 18th century Vienna were WWII Paris; that's Esi Edugyan's joyful lament, Half-Blood Blues.  It's conventional to liken the prose in novels about jazz to the music itself, as though there could be no higher praise. In this case, say rather that any jazz musician would be happy to play the way Edugyan writes.  Her style is deceptively conversational and easy, but with the simultaneous exuberance and discipline of a true prodigy.  Put this book next to Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" – these two works of art belong together."  

Esi Edugyan has degrees from the University of Victoria and Johns Hopkins University. Her work has appeared in several anthologies, including Best New American Voices 2003. Her debut novel, The Second Life of Samuel Tyne was published internationally to critical acclaim. She lives in Victoria, British Columbia.

During tonight’s award ceremony, a roster of celebrity presenters – actress Lisa Ray, actor and producer Zaib Shaikh, recording artist Robbie Robertson, singer/songwriter Nelly Furtado, sports broadcaster Ron Maclean, and Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard – presented video profiles of the shortlisted authors highlighting their nominated books.

About CBC/Radio-Canada

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About bold

bold is a digital television channel dedicated to showcasing the very best programming from around the world. bold pushes the boundaries of conventional television with exclusive live sporting events, daring comedy and intelligent adult drama. Visit us at www.cbc.ca/bold.    

About CBC Books

CBC Books features all of CBC’s rich literary content across all platforms - audio, video and digital. This one-stop destination for book lovers includes in-depth information on books, exclusive interviews with authors, the latest news stories from the publishing world, book reviews, best-seller lists, discussions and blogs. It’s an online meeting place where literary enthusiasts can find the books they want to read, connect with other Canadians who love to read as much as they do, and keep up on all of CBC’s major literary events and programs such as Canada Reads, the Massey Lectures and Canada Writes. Visit us at www.cbc.ca/books

Scotiabank

Scotiabank is committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work, both in Canada and abroad, through our global philanthropic program, ‘Bright Future’.  Recognized as a leader internationally and among Canadian corporations for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, Scotiabank has provided on average approximately $44 million annually to community causes around the world over each of the last five years. Visit us at www.scotiabank.com

The Scotiabank Giller Prize awards $50,000 annually to the author of the best Canadian novel or short story collection published in English and $5,000 to each of the finalists.  The Scotiabank Giller Prize is named in honour of the late literary journalist Doris Giller and was founded in 1994 by her husband Toronto businessman Jack Rabinovitch.

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Veritas Canada

Nell Crichton 

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