articles
November 13, 2000
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WINNERS LIST (ENGLISH) >>Fiction Anil's Ghost Michael Ondaatje >>Poetry Another Gravity Don McKay >>Drama Elizabeth Rex Timothy Findley >>Nonfiction Notes from the Hyena's Belly Nega Mezlekia >>Children's Lit: Text Looking for X Deborah Ellis >>Children's Illustration Yuck, A Love Story Marie-Louise Gay >>Translation Just Fine Robert Majzels |
by Barbara Fletcher
Although expected on November 14, the Governor General's Literary Awards were announced early in a press release posted on the Awards Website November 10.
In a Globe and Mail interview, Canada Council Director Shirley Thomson shrugged off the accidental release, attempting to shift focus to the universal appeal and writing quality of the winning works.
Fiction
Three-time Governor General Award winner Michael Ondaatje has captured the award for Fiction with Anil's Ghost -- a novel which also won this year's Giller Prize on November 2, tying with David Adams Richards' Mercy Among the Children.
Anil's Ghost tells the story of a young human rights activist who returns to her Sri Lankan homeland to find it in the throes of civil war.
Poetry
Another Gravity by Victoria's Don MacKay wins the Award for Poetry. MacKay's ninth collection explores leaving family and homecoming. His collection Night Field secured the Governor General's Award for Poetry in 1991.
Drama
Previous Governor General's Award winner Timothy Findley snags the Drama Award for Elizabeth Rex (Blizzard Publishing), a play about a remarkable encounter between William Shakespeare and his monarch, Queen Elizabeth 1, in which they discuss what makes a man a man and a woman a woman. Elizabeth Rex was performed at the Stratford Theatre this past summer.
Other English Awards
Nonfiction: Notes from the Hyena's Belly by Nega Mezlekia (Penguin Books)
Children's Literature Text: Looking for X by Deborah Ellis (Groundwood Books)
Children's Illustration: Yuck, A Love Story by Marie-Louise Gay (Stoddart Kids)
Translation: Just Fine by Robert Majzels (House of Anansi Press)
French Awards
Fiction: Un vent se lève qui éparpille by Jean Marc Dalpé
Poetry: La Marche de l'aveugle sans son chien by Normand de Bellefeuille
Drama: Littoral by Wajdi Mouawad
Nonfiction: Genèse des nations et cultures du Nouveau Monde by Gérard Bouchard
Children's Literature Text: Un été de Jade by Charlotte Gingras
Children's Illustration: L'Écharpe rouge by Anne Villeneuve
Translation: Un parfum de cèdre by Lori Saint-Martin and Paul Gagné
Gala Reception
The winners were supposed to be revealed at a gala event at Rideau Hall on November 14; however, now that the Winners list has been leaked, the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada, and Jean-Louis Roux, Chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts, will simply present the Awards. An invitation-only reception and dinner will follow.
On November 15, the public is invited to a gala evening reading by the Award winners at the National Library of Canada Auditorium. A special presentation by the winners of the Governor General's Awards in French is planned for November 16 at Salon du livre de Montréal.
The prize has increased this year to $15000 from $10000. The winners will join the ranks of the Canadian literary elite including previous award winners Alice Munro, Earle Birney, and Margaret Avision.
More About the Canada Council for the Arts
The Canada Council for the Arts was founded in 1957 as a result of an Act of Parliament "to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts." The Council provides grants and services to artists and arts organizations, and also adminsters various arts awards in Canada.
Related Links
• Winners Press Release
• Award Winners Book Covers and Bios
• Governor General's Literary Award Winners Gala Readings at the National Library of Canada
• Titles Submitted for the 2000 Governor General's Literary Awards