TORONTO - Acclaimed writers Thomas King, Michael Crummey and Bill Gaston are among the finalists for this year's Governor General's Literary Awards for fiction.
King of Guelph, Ont., who won major non-fiction prizes earlier this year for "The Inconvenient Indian," is on the short list for "The Back of the Turtle" (HarperCollins Canada) -- his first literary novel in 15 years.
Crummey, a 2001 Giller finalist from St. John's, is on the short list for his novel "Sweetland" (Doubleday Canada).
And Victoria-based Gaston, who was shortlisted for the Giller in 2002, is a finalist for "Juliet Was a Surprise" (Hamish Hamilton).
The other fiction finalists are Claire Holden Rothman of Westmount, Que., for "My October" (Penguin Canada) and Winnipeg's Joan Thomas for "The Opening Sky" (McClelland & Stewart).
The Canada Council for the Arts administers the Governor General's Literary Awards, which honour writers in both official languages and in seven categories.
A list of finalists for this year's Governor General's Literary Awards, in top categories:
Fiction:
- Michael Crummey of St. John's for "Sweetland" (Doubleday Canada)
- Bill Gaston of Victoria for "Juliet Was a Surprise" (Hamish Hamilton)
- Claire Holden Rothman of Westmount, Que., for "My October" (Penguin Canada)
- Thomas King of Guelph, Ont., for "The Back of the Turtle" (HarperCollins)
- Joan Thomas of Winnipeg for "The Opening Sky" (McClelland & Stewart)
Non-fiction:
- Michael Harris of Toronto for "The End of Absence: Reclaiming What We've Lost in a World of Constant Connection" (HarperCollins)
- Arno Kopecky of Squamish, B.C., for "The Oil Man and the Sea: Navigating the Northern Gateway" (Douglas & McIntyre)
- Edmund Metatawabin with Alexandra Shimo of Fort Albany, Ont. /Toronto for "Up Ghost River: A Chief's Journey through the Turbulent Waters of Native History" (Alfred A. Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada)
- Maria Mutch of North Kingstown, Rhode Island for "Know the Night: A Memoir of Survival in the Small Hours" (Alfred A. Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada)
Poetry:
- Sadiqa de Meijer of Kingston, Ont., for "Leaving Howe Island" (Oolichan Books)
- Julie Joosten of Toronto for "Light Light" (BookThug)
- Christopher Levenson of Vancouver for "Night Vision" (Quattro Books)
- Garth Martens of Victoria for "Prologue for the Age of Consequence" (House of Anansi Press)
- Arleen Pare of Victoria for "Lake of Two Mountains" (Brick Books)
Drama:
- Rick Chafe of Winnipeg for "The Secret Mask" (Playwrights Canada Press)
- Sean Dixon of Toronto for "A God in Need of Help" (Coach House Books)
- Janet Munsil of Victoria for "That Elusive Spark" (Playwrights Canada Press)
- Jordan Tannahill of Toronto for "Age of Minority: Three Solo Plays" (Playwrights Canada Press)