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34th annual BC Book Prizes shortlist revealed

Featured News Bites • March 12, 2018 • Monica Miller

On Monday, March 12, 2018, the West Coast Book Prize Society announced the BC Book Prizes 2018 shortlists in seven categories.

Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize

The Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize is awarded to the author of the best work of fiction.

  • David Chariandy, Brother (McClelland & Stewart)
  • Andrea MacPherson, What We Once Believed (Caitlin Press)
  • Zoey Leigh Peterson, Next Year, For Sure (Doubleday Canada)
  • Eden Robinson, Son of a Trickster (Knopf Canada)
  • Daniel Zomparelli, Everything Is Awful and You’re a Terrible Person (Arsenal Pulp Press)

Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize

The Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize is to recognize the author(s) of the book that contributes most to the enjoyment and understanding of British Columbia.

  • Sarah de Leeuw, Where It Hurts (NeWest Press)
  • Kotaro Hayashi, Fumio “Frank” Kanno, Henry Tanaka, and Jim Tanaka (editors), Changing Tides: Vanishing Voices of Nikkei Fishermen and Their Families (Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre)
  • Marianne Ignace and Ronald E. Ignace, Secwépemc People, Land, and Laws: Yerí7 re Stsq’ey’s-kucw (McGill-Queen’s University Press)
  • Travis Lupick, Fighting for Space: How a Group of Drug Users Transformed One City’s Struggle with Addiction (Arsenal Pulp Press)
  • K. Jane Watt, Surrey: A City of Stories (City of Surrey)

Hubert Evans Non-Fiction Prize

The Hubert Evans Non-Fiction Prize is awarded to the author(s) of the best original non-fiction literary work.

  • Carys Cragg, Dead Reckoning: How I Came to Meet the Man Who Murdered My Father (Arsenal Pulp Press)
  • Theresa Kishkan, Euclid’s Orchard & Other Essays (Mother Tongue Publishing)
  • Arthur Manuel and Grand Chief Ronald Derrickson, The Reconciliation Manifesto: Recovering the Land, Rebuilding the Economy (James Lorimer and Company Ltd., Publishers)
  • Andrew Struthers, The Sacred Herb / The Devil’s Weed (New Star Books)
  • Paul Watson, Ice Ghosts: The Epic Hunt for the Lost Franklin Expedition (McClelland & Stewart)

Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize

The Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize is awarded to the author of the best work of poetry.

  • Mercedes Eng, Prison Industrial Complex Explodes (Talonbooks)
  • Rhonda Ganz, Frequent, small loads of laundry (Mother Tongue Publishing)
  • Jónína Kirton, An Honest Woman (Talonbooks)
  • Julie Paul, The Rules of the Kingdom (McGill-Queen’s University Press)
  • Onjana Yawnghwe, Fragments, Desire (Oolichan Books)

Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize

The Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize is presented to the best illustrated book written for children.

  • Nicola Campbell, illustrated by Julie Flett, A Day with Yayah (Tradewind Books)
  • Faith Erin Hicks, The Nameless City: The Stone Heart (First Second)
  • Stephen Hume, illustrated by Jessica Bromley Bartram, Charles (Fitzhenry & Whiteside)
  • Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read, Wolf Island (Orca Book Publishers)
  • Bill Richardson, illustrated by Roxanna Bikadoroff, The Alphabet Thief (Groundwood Books)

Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize

The Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize is awarded to the best non-illustrated book written for children.

  • Julie Burtinshaw, Saying Good-bye to London (Second Story Press)
  • Norma Charles, Runner: Harry Jerome, World’s Fastest Man (Red Deer Press)
  • Anne Fleming, The Goat (Groundwood Books)
  • Kallie George, Heartwood Hotel Book 1: A True Home (HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.)
  • G. S. Prendergast, Zero Repeat Forever (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award

The Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award is presented to the originating publisher and author(s) of the best book in terms of public appeal, initiative, design, production, and content.

  • Carleigh Baker, Bad Endings (Anvil Press)
  • Pat Carney, On Island: Life Among the Coast Dwellers (TouchWood Editions)
  • Anita Hadley and Michael L. Hadley (editors), Spindrift: A Canadian Book of the Sea (Douglas & McIntyre)
  • Grant Lawrence, Dirty Windshields: The Best and the Worst of the Smugglers Tour Diaries (Douglas & McIntyre)
  • Roy Henry Vickers and Robert Budd, Hello Humpback! (Harbour Publishing)

The winners will be announced at the 34th annual BC Book Prizes Gala on Friday, May 4, 2018, at the Pinnacle Hotel Harbourfront in downtown Vancouver.

There will be a free, casual celebratory event for all nominees at the BC Book Prizes Soirée in early April. A selection of the shortlisted authors will also be part of BC Book Prizes On Tour. This reading tour takes authors to schools and public venues in many communities throughout BC from April 16 to May 3.