TORONTO, Nov. 20, 2017 /CNW/ - Michael Redhill has been named the winner of the
$100,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize for
his novel Bellevue Square,
published by Doubleday Canada. The announcement was made at a
black-tie dinner and award ceremony hosted by Mary Walsh and
attended by nearly 500 members of the publishing, media and arts
communities. The gala was broadcast live on CBC, CBC Radio One and
live-streamed on CBCBooks.ca.
This year the Prize celebrates its 24th anniversary.
The shortlist of five authors and their books, announced on
October 2, 2017, included:
- Rachel Cusk for her novel Transit, published by
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
- Ed O'Loughlin for his
novel Minds of Winter, published by House of Anansi
Press
- Michael Redhill for his
novel Bellevue Square,
published by Doubleday Canada
- Eden Robinson for her
novel Son of a Trickster, published by Alfred A. Knopf Canada
- Michelle Winters for her
novel I am a Truck, published by Invisible Publishing
The esteemed five-member jury panel made up of Canadian writers
André Alexis (2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize winner), Anita Rau Badami (jury chair) and Lynn Coady (2013 Scotiabank Giller Prize
winner), along with British writer Richard
Beard and American writer Nathan
Englander selected the longlist, shortlist and ultimate
winner.
Of the winning book, the jury wrote:
"To borrow a line from Michael
Redhill's beautiful Bellevue
Square, "I do subtlety in other areas of my life." So
let's look past the complex literary wonders of this book, the
doppelgangers and bifurcated brains and alternate selves, the
explorations of family, community, mental health, and literary
life. Let's stay straightforward, and tell you that beyond the
mysterious elements, this novel is warm, and funny, and smart.
Let's celebrate that it is, simply, a pleasure to read."
MICHAEL REDHILL is a novelist, poet, playwright and former
publisher of Brick. He is the author of the novels,
Consolation and Martin
Sloane, which was a finalist for the 2001 Giller Prize;
the short story collection Fidelity; and the poetry
collection Light-Crossing; among other acclaimed works. He
lives in Toronto.
During the award ceremony, Canadian soprano
Measha Brueggergosman performed a tribute to Jack Rabinovitch, founder of the Giller Prize
who died in August. A roster of distinguished
authors – Lawrence
Hill, John Irving,
Rupi Kaur, Thomas King and Madeleine
Thien – introduced the shortlisted authors and
presented video profiles highlighting the nominated books.
Listen to CBC Radio's q tomorrow at 10
a.m. ET for an interview with Michael Redhill and relive the gala at
CBCBooks.ca.
Ask the author your questions about his book during a live
Twitter chat hosted by @GillerPrize on November 23 at 2:00 p.m.
ET using the hashtag #GillerWinner.
Images from tonight's gala will be available on the Media
Resources page at www.scotiabankgillerprize.ca
PARTNERSHIPS AND SPONSORSHIPS:
Audible is the exclusive audiobook sponsor of the Scotiabank
Giller Prize. In September, the world's leader in Audiobooks and
audio entertainment launched Audible.ca, a dedicated service for
Canadians which celebrates our country's rich literary and
theatrical tradition.
The winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize will be given an
opportunity to explore, expand, and develop their practice during a
two-week, self-directed residency in Banff Centre for Arts and
Creativity's exclusive Leighton Artists' Studios. Banff
Centre is Canada's leading destination for arts training and is
located in the heart of Banff National
Park. (banffcentre.ca)
About the Prize
The Scotiabank Giller Prize, founded in 1994, highlights the
very best in Canadian fiction year after year. The Prize awards
$100,000 annually to the author of
the best Canadian novel or short story collection published in
English, and $10,000 to each of the
finalists. The award is named in honour of the late literary
journalist Doris Giller by her
husband, Toronto businessman Jack
Rabinovitch, who passed away suddenly in August 2017.
About Scotiabank
Scotiabank is Canada's international bank and a
leading financial services provider in North
America, Latin America,
the Caribbean and Central America,
and Asia-Pacific. We are dedicated to helping our 24 million
customers become better off through a broad range of advice,
products and services, including personal and commercial banking,
wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment
banking, and capital markets. With a team of more than 88,000
employees and assets of over $906 billion (as
at July 31, 2017), Scotiabank trades on
the Toronto (TSX: BNS) and New York Exchanges (NYSE:
BNS). For more information, please
visit www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter
@ScotiabankViews.
About Scotiabank Giller Light Bash
Now in its 16th year, the Scotiabank Giller Light
Bash is hosted nationwide in seven cities – Vancouver, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Thunder
Bay, Toronto and
Halifax – in support of national
literacy organization Frontier College. All proceeds support
Frontier College and provide essential literacy programs for
children, youth and adults in communities across Canada. For more
information, please visit www.gillerlightbash.ca
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster and one
of its largest cultural institutions. We are Canada's trusted
source of news, information and Canadian entertainment. Deeply
rooted in communities all across the country, CBC/Radio-Canada
offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous
languages. We also provide international news and information from
a uniquely Canadian perspective. In 2017, CBC/Radio-Canada will be
at the heart of the celebrations and conversations with special
2017-themed multiplatform programming and events across Canada.
About Audible
Audible, Inc., an Amazon.com, Inc. subsidiary
(NASDAQ:AMZN), is the leading provider of premium digital spoken
audio content, offering customers a new way to enhance and enrich
their lives every day. Audible was created to unleash the emotive
music in language and the habituating power and utility of verbal
expression. Audible content includes more than 300,000 audio
programs from leading audiobook publishers, broadcasters,
entertainers, magazine and newspaper publishers, and business
information providers. Audible is also the provider of spoken-word
audio products for Apple's iTunes Store.
About Banff Centre
Founded in 1933, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is a
learning organization built upon an extraordinary legacy of
excellence in artistic and creative development. What started as a
single course in drama has grown to become the global organization
leading in arts, culture, and creativity across dozens of
disciplines. From our home in the stunning Canadian Rocky
Mountains, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity aims to inspire
everyone who attends our campus – artists, leaders, and thinkers –
to unleash their creative potential and realize their unique
contribution to society through cross-disciplinary learning
opportunities, world-class performances, and public outreach.
www.banffcentre.ca
About Cineplex
A leading entertainment and media company, Cineplex (TSX:CGX) is
a top-tier Canadian brand that operates in the Film Entertainment
and Content, Amusement and Leisure, and Media sectors. As
Canada's largest and most innovative film exhibitor, Cineplex
welcomes 75 million guests annually through its circuit of 163
theatres across the country. Cineplex also operates
successful businesses in digital commerce (CineplexStore.com), food
service, alternative programming (Cineplex Events), cinema media
(Cineplex Media), digital place-based media (Cineplex Digital
Media), amusement solutions (Player One Amusement Group) and an
online eSports platform for competitive and passionate gamers
(WorldGaming.com). Additionally, Cineplex operates a location
based entertainment business through Canada's newest destination
for 'Eats & Entertainment' (The Rec Room), and will also be
opening new complexes specially designed for teens and families
(Playdium) as well as exciting new sports and entertainment venues
in communities across the country (Topgolf). Cineplex is a
joint venture partner in SCENE, Canada's largest entertainment
loyalty program.
Proudly recognized as having one of the country's Most Admired
Corporate Cultures, Cineplex employs approximately 13,000 people in
its offices across Canada and the United States. To learn
more visit Cineplex.com or download the Cineplex App.
SOURCE Scotiabank