Wordfest 2014 artists shortlisted for GG awards

October 7 (Ottawa, ON): The Canada Council for the Arts today announced the 2014 shortlist for the Governor General’s Literary Awards (GG). Among the nominees are several artists appearing in Calgary and Banff for the 19th annual Wordfest, October 14-19.

Fiction:

Michael Crummey for Sweetland (Doubleday Canada)

Evoking The Shipping News, Michael Crummey—one of Canada’s finest novelists—conjures up the mythical, sublime world of Sweetland’s past amid a storm-battered landscape haunted by local lore.

Michael Crummey is a poet and author of short stories and novels including the collections Under the Keel and Galore, which won the Commonwealth Prize for Canada. At Wordfest he appears in the Festival’s humorous reading series, Literary Death Match on Friday, October 17, and in One-on-one with Michael Crummey with host Jennifer Keene on Saturday, October 18.

Thomas King for The Back of the Turtle (HarperCollins)

The Back of the Turtle is Thomas King's first literary novel in fifteen years, following the success of The Inconvenient Indian.

Thomas King opens Wordfest's weekend at The Banff Centre on Friday, October 17, bringing to the stage his trademark wit and wordplay. He presents in Calgary on Saturday, October 18, in conversation with Fred Stenson as part of the Festival's new Weekend One-on-one series.

Non-fiction:

Edmund Metatawabin for Up Ghost River: A Chief's Journey through the Turbulent Waters of Native History (Alfred A. Knopf Canada)

Edmund Metatawabin (ON, Canada), former chief of Fort Albany First Nation, is a Cree writer, educator and activist. As a residential school survivor, he has devoted himself to righting the wrongs of the past, and educating Native youth in traditional knowledge.

At Wordfest, Metatawabin appears in The Philosopher, Poet and Chief on Friday, October 17, and at the Glenbow on Saturday, October 18.

Children's Literature (Text):

Jonathan Auxier for The Night Gardener (Penguin Canada)

The Night Gardener follows two abandoned Irish siblings who travel to work as servants at a creepy, crumbling English manor house. This much-anticipated follow-up to Jonathan Auxier’s exceptional debut, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes, is a Victorian ghost story with shades of Washington Irving and Henry James.

At Wordfest, Auxier appears with Scott Chantler on Friday, October 17, as part of the First Calgary Financial Book Rapport program. His evening apppearances include Writers and Mixtapes on Tuesday, October 14, and New Gothic on Friday, October 17.

Children's Literature (Illustration)

Marianne Dubuc for Le lion et l'oiseau (Les Éditions de la Pastèque)

In 2006, Marianne Dubuc began a career in children’s literature, following studies in Graphic Design. Both author and illustrator, her second book Front of my House was a great success both in Quebec and abroad and launched her career in Europe. She has since published several books, translated into more than 15 languages.

At Wordfest, she appears with Anna Dewdney on Thursday, October 16, as part of the First Calgary Financial Book Rapport program, and in a special free event on Saturday, October 18, at the Calgary Public Library.

The GG winners will be announced, November 18, 2014. Stay tuned to ggbooks.ca for the digital announcement at 10 am ET!

To commemorate the Governor General’s Literary Awards, Wordfest and CJSW 90.9FM have partnered to create The GG Podcast. Now in its fourth year, Wordfest selects and interviews writers who have received a GG award in various categories. This year, the podcast will be recorded before a live audience at Theatre Junction GRAND, Saturday, October 18, 8:30pm.