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For the first time in the history of the Awards one book wins in both categories of children’s literature (text and illustration): Harvey by author Hervé Bouchard and illustrator Janice Nadeau, a three-time
Award-winner. Children’s literature was also the focus in the English-language translation category, with Susan Ouriou winning for her translation of a young adult novel, Pieces of Me, a translation of La liberté? Connais pas… by Charlotte Gingras. Paule Noyart, winner in French-language translation, takes home her second Award this year for her translation of Camilla Gibb’s Sweetness in the Belly.  M.G. Vassanji, a past finalist in fiction, wins this year in the non-fiction category for his account of his travel in India. This year, 12 of the 14 winners receive this award for the very first time.

Winners

Fiction

Kate Pullinger, London (UK) [originally from Cranbrook,
British Columbia], The Mistress of Nothing.
(McArthur & Company; distributed by the publisher)

In The Mistress of Nothing, Kate Pullinger creates the fascinating character of Sally, maid to Lady Duff Gordon in Victorian times. Over the course of a memorable journey down the Nile with her Lady, Sally comes to realizations about the nature of power – its seductiveness, its elusiveness and its ability to alter the soul in manifold ways.

Julie Mazzieri, Velone-Orneto (France) [originally from
Saint-Paul-de-Chester, Quebec], Le discours sur la tombe de l’idiot.
(Éditions José Corti; distributed by Diffusion Dimédia)

An exceptionally polished novel, the result of an exemplary mastery of narrative. The text is deep, dark and implacable, and the tight, suspenseful writing stays with us long after the book is finished. The author sets herself the challenge of making the story believable, and she has succeeded brilliantly.

Poetry

David Zieroth, North Vancouver, The Fly in Autumn.
(Harbour Publishing; distributed by the publisher)

In The Fly in Autumn, David Zieroth addresses our common and defining human fate – the loneliness that is a rehearsal for death – with a tenderness and buoyancy that shows the reader “how to walk in the dark with flowers.” The intricacy and exuberance of rhyme and the breadth of vision are stunning.

Hélène Monette, Montreal, Thérèse pour joie et orchestre.
(Les Éditions du Boréal; distributed by Diffusion Dimédia)

In Thérèse pour joie et orchestre, the poet transforms the sister she lost to illness into a happy spirit floating over people and places. This elegy orchestrated by Hélène Monette is astonishing in its ability to touch the reader. A magnificent ode in a voice that is generous and powerful.

Drama

Kevin Loring, Vancouver, Where the Blood Mixes.
(Talonbooks; distributed by Publishers Group Canada)

An abducted daughter returns to her wounded community after many years away. Kevin Loring illuminates the complex aftermath of the residential school system and the circumstances of contemporary Aboriginal history through compelling, sympathetic and humorous characters who live as best they can, with courage and strength.

Suzanne Lebeau, Montreal, Le bruit des os qui craquent.
(Leméac Éditeur; distributed by Socadis)

Le bruit des os qui craquent is a rare, courageous and beautiful work. Suzanne Lebeau conveys the devastating effects of war on children with sensitivity and uncompromising rigour. Directly and with heartbreaking lucidity, she broaches the question of individual and collective responsibility, and proposes empathy as the road toward hope and ultimately, redemption.

Non-fiction

M.G. Vassanji, Toronto, A Place Within: Rediscovering India.
(Doubleday Canada; distributed by Random House of Canada)

An utterly brilliant, evocative memoir that ranges across the landscapes of culture, memory, identity and history. M.G. Vassanji’s style – diverse and playful – brings the reader along effortlessly, illuminating the ramshackle roots of self, family, and culture. An outstanding book of self-reflection and persistent insight, A Place Within is the resonant chronicle of a sage, a traveler, a pilgrim.

Nicole V. Champeau, Ottawa, Pointe Maligne : l’infiniment oubliée.
(Les Éditions du Vermillon; distributed by Prologue)

Like a requiem, this book sings of the destruction of the territories of the Upper Saint Lawrence, drowned by dams and depopulated by expropriation. These places have even disappeared from the memories of maps. Around Cornwall, originally called Pointe Maligne, the memory of the founding peoples, Amerindian and French, has been obliterated.

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Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will present the 2009 Literary Awards on Thursday, November 26 at 6 p.m., at Rideau Hall. Media representatives wishing to cover the awards presentation should contact Julie Rocheleau at the Rideau Hall Press Office, 613-998-7280 or jrocheleau@gg.ca.

Read the full store at the Canada Council Website.