06 Sep 2011
September 6, 2011 (Toronto, ON) – The 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize jury today announced its longlist of books in the running for this year’s award. The jury selected 16 titles out of 143 books – a record-setting number of submissions – put forward by 55 publishers from every region of Canada.
This year’s jury is made up of: award-winning Canadian writer and 2009 Giller finalist Annabel Lyon; American author, memoirist and Guggenheim fellow Howard Norman; and acclaimed UK playwright and prize-winning novelist Andrew O’Hagan.
Two thousand and eleven marks the 18th year of the prize.
The 143 books of fiction received this year represent a nearly 50% increase in submissions received in any other year since the prize was incepted in 1994.
From a large and highly competitive field, the Scotiabank Giller Prize jury selected the following titles for this year’s longlist:
David Bezmozgis for his novel, THE FREE WORLD, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Clarke Blaise for his short story collection, THE MEAGRE TARMAC, Biblioasis
Lynn Coady for her novel, THE ANTAGONIST, House of Anansi Press
Michael Christie for his short story collection, THE BEGGAR’S GARDEN, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
Patrick DeWitt for his novel, THE SISTERS BROTHERS, House of Anansi Press
*Myrna Dey for her novel, EXTENSIONS, NeWest Press
Esi Edugyan for her novel, HALF-BLOOD BLUES, Thomas Allen Publishers
Marina Endicott for her novel, THE LITTLE SHADOWS, Doubleday Canada
Zsuzsi Gartner for her short story collection, BETTER LIVING THROUGH PLASTIC EXPLOSIVES, Hamish Hamilton Canada
Genni Gunn for her novel, SOLITARIA, Signature Editions
Pauline Holdstock for her novel, INTO THE HEART OF THE COUNTRY, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Wayne Johnston for his novel, A WORLD ELSEWHERE, Knopf Canada
Dany Laferrière for his novel, THE RETURN (translation, David Homel), Douglas & McIntyre
Suzette Mayr for her novel, MONOCEROS, Coach House Books
Michael Ondaatje for his novel, THE CAT’S TABLE, McClelland & Stewart
Guy Vanderhaeghe for his novel, A GOOD MAN, McClelland & Stewart
Alexi Zentner for his novel, TOUCH, Knopf Canada
*READERS’ CHOICE
Of the longlist, the jury writes:
“Each title on our longlist dignifies world literature, not only Canadian literature. That said, the Canadian fiction we have unanimously chosen exhibits an astonishing range of dramatic incident, subject, narrative strategy and memorable characters. What connects these wonderful books is an excellence of craft. Many of these novels and collections have intensely cinematic qualities; others, decidedly influenced by l9th century classics. All have the deepest levels of engagement with the art of storytelling and bring life to the page with vivid immediacy. Our list is a celebration of eclectic and fearless writing.”
This year and for the first time, the Scotiabank Giller Prize launched a campaign which invited the public to choose a book for the longlist. The Readers’ Choice contest on
The shortlisted finalists will be revealed at a news conference in Toronto on Tuesday, October 4th. The winner will be announced at a gala ceremony in Toronto on November 8, 2011, broadcast on CBC Television.
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.
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. The Corporation is a leader in reaching Canadians on new platforms and delivers a comprehensive range of radio, television, Internet, and satellite-based services. Deeply rooted in the regions, CBC/Radio-Canada is the only domestic broadcaster to offer diverse regional and cultural perspectives in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages, plus seven languages for international audiences. In 2011, CBC/Radio-Canada is celebrating 75 years of serving Canadians and being at the centre of the democratic, social and cultural life of Canada.
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.
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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.