Important DatesThe 2013 Scotiabank Giller Prize jury announced its longlist on Monday, September 16. The jury read an astonishing 147 works of fiction this year, submitted by 61 publishers from every region of the country. Two thousand and thirteen marks the 20th year of the prize. This year, the jury features Canadian literary icon Margaret Atwood; Giller Prize- winning author Esi Edugyan; and best-selling American writer Jonathan Lethem.
Of the 2013 longlist, the jury writes:
“These are essential stories. Each of these novels and story collections offer a glimpse of who we are, who we might be. Whether set in postwar Vienna, or 1970s Montreal, contemporary Afghanistan or Newfoundland, each of these books took us out of ourselves to places that were at times uncomfortable, at times exhilarating. Some of the short stories in these collections exhibit a scope and breadth one would normally associate with a novel; some of the novels on this list have the distilled intensity one expects from short fiction. But all of these books surprised us with their formal rigour, the ferocity of their vision, and their willingness to tell unknown stories in remarkably familiar ways. These thirteen books remind us, once again, of that particular beauty only the written word can realize. This is writing at its finest.”
The finalists will be revealed at an event in Toronto on Tuesday, October 8. 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.
Dennis Bock
Going Home Again
published by HarperCollins Canada
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Excerpted from GOING HOME AGAIN by Dennis Bock. Copyright © Dennis Bock, 2013. Excerpted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Joseph Boyden
The Orenda
published by Hamish Hamilton Canada
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Excerpted from THE ORENDA by Joseph Boyden. Copyright © Joseph Boyden, 2013. Excerpted by permission of Penguin Canada Books Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Lynn Coady
Hellgoing
published by House of Anansi Press
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From HELLGOING by Lynn Coady. Copyright © Lynn Coady, 2013. Excerpt reproduced with the permission of House of Anansi Press. www.houseofanansi.com. All rights reserved.
Craig Davidson
Cataract City
published by Doubleday Canada
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Excerpted from CATARACT CITY. Copyright © 2013 Craig Davidson. Published by Doubleday Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Elisabeth De Mariaffi
How to Get Along With Women
published by Invisible Publishing
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Excerpted from HOW TO GET ALONG WITH WOMAN by Elisabeth de Mariaffi. Copyright © Elisabeth de Mariaffi, 2012. Excerpted by permission of Invisible Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
David Gilmour
Extraordinary
published by Patrick Crean Editions
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Excerpted from EXTRAORDINARY by David Gilmour. Copyright © David Gilmour, 2013. Excerpted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Wayne Grady
Emancipation Day
published by Doubleday Canada
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Excerpted from Emancipation Day. Copyright © 2013 Wayne Grady. Published by Doubleday Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Louis Hamelin
October 1970
translated by Wayne Grady
published by House of Anansi Press
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From OCTOBER 1970 by Louis Hamelin, translated by Wayne Grady. Copyright © 2010 Éditions du Boréal. English translation copyright © 2013 Wayne Grady. Excerpt reproduced with the permission of House of Anansi Press. www.houseofanansi.com. All rights reserved.
Wayne Johnston
The Son of a Certain Woman
published by Knopf Canada
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Excerpted from THE SON OF A CERTAIN WOMAN by Wayne Johnston. Copyright © Wayne Johnston 2013. Excerpted by permission of Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Claire Messud
The Woman Upstairs
published by Knopf Canada
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Excerpted from The Woman Upstairs. Copyright © 2013 Claire Messud. Published by Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Lisa Moore
Caught
published by House of Anansi Press
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From CAUGHT by Lisa Moore. Copyright © Lisa Moore, 2013. Excerpt reproduced with the permission of House of Anansi Press. www.houseofanansi.com. All rights reserved.
Dan Vyleta
The Crooked Maid
published by HarperCollins Canada
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Excerpted from THE CROOKED MAID by Dan Vyleta. Copyright © Dan Vyleta, 2013. Excerpted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Michael Winter
Minister Without Portfolio
published by Hamish Hamilton
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Excerpted from MINISTER WITHOUT PORTFOLIO by Michael Winter. Copyright © Michael Winter, 2013. Excerpted by permission of Penguin Canada Books Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher
