The West Coast Book Prize Society has announced the names of the finalists for the 31st annual BC Book Prizes.
For best work of fiction:
• Caroline Adderson, Ellen in Pieces (HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.)
• Aislinn Hunter, The World Before Us (Doubleday Canada)
• Kathy Page, Paradise and Elsewhere (Biblioasis)
• Brian Payton, The Wind Is Not a River (HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.)
• Michael Springate, The Beautiful West & The Beloved of God (Guernica Editions)
For the author(s) of the book that contributes most to the enjoyment and understanding of British Columbia:
• Richard Beamish and Gordon McFarlane (editors), The Sea Among Us: The Amazing Strait of Georgia (Harbour Publishing)
• Margaret Horsfield and Ian Kennedy, Tofino and Clayoquot Sound: A History (Harbour Publishing)
• Christine Lowther, Born Out of This (Caitlin Press)
• Ian McAllister, Great Bear Wild: Dispatches from a Northern Rainforest (Greystone Books)
• Jay Sherwood, Surveying Southern British Columbia: A Photojournal of Frank Swannell, 1901-07 (Caitlin Press)
For best original non-fiction literary work:
• Julie Angus, Olive Odyssey: Searching for the Secrets of the Fruit That Seduced the World (Greystone Books)
• Kevin Chong, Northern Dancer: The Legendary Horse That Inspired a Nation (Viking)
• Barry Gough, The Elusive Mr. Pond: The Soldier, Fur Trader and Explorer Who Opened the Northwest (Douglas & McIntyre)
• Eve Joseph, In the Slender Margin: The Intimate Strangeness of Dying (HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.)
• Nancy J. Turner, Ancient Pathways, Ancestral Knowledge: Ethnobotany and Ecological Wisdom of Indigenous Peoples of Northwestern North America (McGill-Queen’s University Press)
For the author of the best work of poetry:
• Rob Budde, Dreamland Theatre (Caitlin Press)
• Jen Currin, School (Coach House Books)
• Kayla Czaga, For Your Safety Please Hold On (Nightwood Editions)
• Patrick Lane, Washita (Harbour Publishing)
• Cecily Nicholson, From the Poplars (Talonbooks)
For best illustrated book written for children:
• Norman, Speak!, by Caroline Adderson, illustrated by Qin Leng (Groundwood Books)
• Dolphin SOS, by Roy Miki and Slavia Miki, illustrated by Julie Flett (Tradewind Books)
• The Most Magnificent Thing, by Ashley Spires, illustrated by Ashley Spires (Kids Can Press)
• Stop, Thief!, by Heather Tekavec, illustrated by Pierre Pratt (Kids Can Press)
• Hana Hashimoto, Sixth Violin, by Chieri Uegaki, illustrated by Qin Leng (Kids Can Press)
For best non-illustrated book written for children:
• Becky Citra, Finding Grace (Second Story Press)
• Maggie de Vries, Rabbit Ears (HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.)
• Eileen Kernaghan, Sophie, in Shadow (Thistledown Press)
• Gabrielle Prendergast, Capricious (Orca Book Publishers)
• Elizabeth Stewart, Blue Gold (Annick Press)
For the originating publisher and author(s) of the best book in terms of public appeal, initiative, design, production, and content:
• Lisa Ahier, The Sobo Cookbook: Recipes from the Tofino Restaurant at the End of the Canadian Road (Appetite by Random House)
• Richard Beamish and Gordon McFarlane (editors), The Sea Among Us: The Amazing Strait of Georgia (Harbour Publishing)
• Aaron Chapman, Live at the Commodore: The Story of Vancouver's Historic Commodore Ballroom (Arsenal Pulp Press)
• Alicia Priest, A Rock Fell on the Moon: Dad and the Great Yukon Silver Ore Heist (Harbour Publishing)
• Roy Henry Vickers and Robert Budd, Cloudwalker (Harbour Publishing)
The winners will be announced at the Lieutenant Governor’s BC Book Prizes Gala on Saturday, April 25 at the Pinnacle Vancouver Harbourfront Hotel.
Winners in the seven categories and the recipient of the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence will collectively receive $19,000 in cash prizes.
