Congratulations to Leanne Simpson, Canisia Lubrin, Amanda Leduc, Eric Walters and Polly Horvath, who have all been named 2020 Governor General’s Award Finalists!
National Bestseller and A Globe And Mail Top 100 Book of the Year NOOPIMING by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson (House of Anansi Press) is a finalist in the Fiction category. Leanne is a Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg writer, scholar, and musician, and a member of Alderville First Nation. She is the author of five previous books, including This Accident of Being Lost, which won the MacEwan Book of the Year and the Peterborough Arts Award for Outstanding Achievement by an Indigenous Author; was a finalist for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Trillium Book Award; was longlisted for CBC Canada Reads; and was named a best book of the year by the Globe and Mail, National Post, and Quill & Quire. She has released two albums, including f(l)ight, which is a companion piece to This Accident of Being Lost. Leanne is represented by Marilyn Biderman.
The multi-award winning collection THE DYZGRAPHXST by Canisia Lubrin (McClelland & Stewart) is a finalist in the Poetry category. Canisia is a writer, editor, and teacher. Her work is published widely and has been frequently anthologized, including translations into French, German, Italian, and Spanish. Lubrin’s most recent poetry collection, The Dyzgraphxst, was awarded the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, named a finalist for the Derek Walcott Poetry Prize and the Griffin Poetry Prize, and longlisted for the Raymond Souster Award and the Pat Lowther Memorial Award. Her debut poetry collection Voodoo Hypothesis, was named a CBC Best Poetry Book, longlisted for the Gerald Lampert Award, the Pat Lowther Memorial Award, and a finalist for the Raymond Souster Award. She was a finalist for the Toronto Book Award for her fiction contribution to The Unpublished City: Vol 1 and twice longlisted for the Journey Prize. In 2019, she was Writer in Residence at Queen’s University, and was named a Writers’ Trust 2020 Rising Star. In 2021, Lubrin was a recipient of the Windham-Campbell Prize. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Guelph. Her fiction debut, Code Noir, is forthcoming from Knopf Canada. Canisia is represented by Samantha Haywood.
DISFIGURED: On Fairytales, Disability and Making Space by Amanda Leduc (Coach House Books) is a finalist in the Nonfiction category. Amanda Leduc’s essays and stories have appeared in publications across Canada, the US, and the UK. She is the author of the novels The Miracles of Ordinary Men and the recently published The Centaur’s Wife. She has cerebral palsy and lives in Hamilton, Ontario, where she works as the Communications Coordinator for the Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD), Canada’s first festival for diverse authors and stories. Amanda is represented by Samantha Haywood.
THE KING OF JAM SANDWICHES by Eric Walters (Orca Book Publishers) is a finalist in the Young People’s Literature category. Eric Walters is the award-winning author of more than 100 novels and picture books. He is a tireless presenter, speaking to over 100,000 students per year in schools across the country. A Member of the Order of Canada, Eric lives in Guelph, Ontario. Eric is represented by Amy Tompkins.
PINE ISLAND HOME by Newbery Honor and National Book Award-winning author Polly Horvath (Puffin Canada) is also a finalist in the Young People’s Literature category. Polly Horvath is the author of many books for young people, including The Night Garden, Everything on a Waffle, The Pepins and Their Problems, The Canning Season and The Trolls. Her numerous awards include the Newbery Honor, the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor and the Vicky Metcalf Award for Children’s Literature. She has also been shortlisted for The Deutscher Jugenliteraturpreis, Germany’s most prestigious literature award. Horvath grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She lives in Metchosin, British Columbia. Polly is represented by Andrea Cascardi.
To see the full list of finalists, please visit: https://ggbooks.ca/