Esi Edugyan, Patrick deWitt shortlisted for $100K Giller Prize
Jessica Wong | CBC News | Posted: October 1, 2018 3:22 PM | Last Updated: October 1, 2018
Rick Mercer to host Nov. 19 prize gala
Esi Edugyan and Patrick deWitt will go head to head for one of Canada's top literary prizes once again, with the celebrated writers shortlisted for the 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
Organizers announced this year's five finalists for the $100,000 prize, which honours excellence in long or short-format fiction writing by Canadians, in Toronto Monday morning. They are:
- Songs for the Cold of Heart by Eric Dupont.
- Washington Black by Esi Edugyan.
- French Exit by Patrick deWitt.
- Motherhood by Sheila Heti.
- An Ocean of Minutes by Thea Lim.
Former Giller-winner Edugyan and past finalist deWitt faced off in 2011, when their earlier novels Half-Blood Blues and The Sisters Brothers were nominated for several literary awards in Canada and the U.K. Last month, a Hollywood film adaptation of deWitt's The Sisters Brothers screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Washington Black, Edugyan's latest novel, is also a finalist for the U.K.'s Man Booker Prize and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.
Dupont, Heti and Lim are first-time finalists for the annual prize.
- CBC BOOKS | Learn more about the 2018 Giller Prize finalists
'Fruitful and interesting discussion'
The jury includes journalist Kamal Al-Solaylee, Toronto International Film Festival executive Maxine Bailey and writers Heather O'Neill, Philip Hensher and John Freeman.
"One of the nice things [during deliberations] was to hit upon books where everyone said 'Yes, this one,'" juror Hensher noted shortly after the announcement.
While "you can't like everything," the British author admitted, "with books we disagreed about, it was always a kind of fruitful and interesting discussion."
The range of books the jurors encountered — both for the long list as well as in the shortlisted titles — and the diversity of the judging panel itself reflects Canada today, noted Bailey.
"There are some books that I initially got on the list that I went: 'Oh. I'm not usually into this genre.' I was transfixed and transformed by a lot of these stories. So I just say give it a shot, give it a try. There are great stories. We're celebrating Canada," she said.
Al-Solaylee also encouraged Canadians to "read outside your comfort zone. It's good for your soul."
Comedian Rick Mercer will host this year's gala, set for Nov. 19 in Toronto. The ceremony will air on CBC and be live-streamed at CBCBooks.ca.
The Giller was established in 1994 by businessman Jack Rabinovitch in memory of his wife, literary journalist Doris Giller. Past winners have included Margaret Atwood, Mordecai Richler, Alice Munro, M.G. Vasanji and André Alexis.