As CBC announces the incredible shortlist of Canada Reads contenders and defenders this morning, Transatlantic congratulates Samra Habib, whose stellar memoir WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE (Penguin Random House Canada) will be defended by Amanda Brugel, and Megan Gail Coles, whose masterful, Giller-finalist SMALL GAME HUNTING AT THE LOCAL COWARD GUN CLUB (House of Anansi) will be defended by Alayna Fender!
About Megan Gail Coles
Megan Gail Coles is a graduate of the Memorial University of Newfoundland and the National Theatre School of Canada and is completing an MFA at the University of British Columbia. She has completed numerous plays, and her first fiction collection of short stories, Eating Habits of the Chronically Lonesome, won the BMO Winterset Award, the ReLit Award, and the Margaret and John Savage First Book Award and earned her the one-time Writers’ Trust 5×5 prize. Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club is her first novel and was shortlisted for the 2019 Giller Prize. Originally from Savage Cove on the Great Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland, Megan now resides in St. John’s, where she is the Executive Director of Riddle Fence and Projects Manager at Eastern Edge Gallery.
Megan Gail Coles is represented by Samantha Haywood.
About Samra Habib
Samra Habib is a writer, photographer, and activist. As a journalist she’s covered topics ranging from fashion trends and Muslim dating apps to the rise of Islamophobia in the US. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Advocate, and her photo project, “Just Me and Allah,” has been featured in Nylon, i-D, Vanity Fair Italia, Vice, and The Washington Post. She works with LGBTQ organizations internationally, raising awareness of issues that impact queer Muslims around the world. We Have Always Been Here is her first book and was longlisted for the 2020 RBC Taylor Prize.
Samra Habib is represented by Samantha Haywood.
About Canada Reads
Canada Reads is a “literary Survivor,” with celebrities championing books. Each day of the competition, panellists vote to eliminate one book, until a single title is chosen as the title the whole country should read this year.
The debates will take place March 16-19 on CBC, CBC Gem, CBC Radio and CBC Books.
To read more about the contenders, please visit: http://bit.ly/2tKnLFh