The Giller Prize (known as the Scotiabank Giller Prize from 2005-2023[1]) is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competition between publishers who submit entries. The prize was established in 1994 by Toronto businessman Jack Rabinovitch in honour of his late wife Doris Giller, a former literary editor at the Toronto Star, and is awarded in November of each year along with a cash reward (then CAN$25,000) with the winner being presented by the previous year's winning author.[2]
| Giller Prize | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Awarded for | English-language Canadian fiction including translations |
| Country | Canada |
| Presented by | Scotiabank and the Giller Prize Foundation |
| First awarded | November 1994 |
| Website | scotiabankgillerprize.ca |
Since its inception, the Giller Prize has been awarded to emerging and established authors from both small independent and large publishing houses in Canada.
History
editFrom 1994 to 2004, the prize included a bronze figure created by artist Yehouda Chaki.[3] The current prize includes a trophy designed by Soheil Mosun.[4]
On September 22, 2005, the Giller Prize established an endorsement deal with Canadian bank Scotiabank. The total prize package for the award was increased to $50,000, with $40,000 presented to the winning author and $2,500 each for the other four shortlisted nominees. The award's official name was also changed at that time to the Scotiabank Giller Prize.
In 2006, the prize instituted a longlist for the first time, comprising no fewer than 10 and no more than 15 titles. In 2008, the prize fund was increased to $50,000 for the winning author and $5,000 for each of the authors on the shortlist. In 2014, the prize package was expanded further, to $100,000 for the winning author and $10,000 for each of the shortlisted authors.[5] If a translated work wins the award, however, then the prize money is split, with 70 per cent going to the original author and 30 per cent going to the translator.[6]
In 2015, the jury was expanded from three to five people.[7]
Over the years, the Giller Prize has run different promotions to extend its recognition and support of Canadian literary talent[8] to highlight all Canadian fiction eligible for the prize in a given publishing year. For example, the Craving CanLit feature (previously called Crazy for CanLit), which highlights the initial list of all titles that are under consideration for the award's longlist and shortlist nominations, seeks to publicize Canadian literature by engaging readers and writers through social media tools. Another online initiative started in 2021, the Giller Book Club, featuring virtual author readings and interviews, got off to a bumpy start when the inaugural offering was the victim of zoombombing.[9]
Since Rabinovitch's death in 2017, the Giller Prize Foundation is now overseen by his daughter Elana Rabinovitch.[10]
Cultural debate
editFollowing Vincent Lam's win of the Giller Prize in 2006, Geist columnist Stephen Henighan criticized the Giller Prize for its apparent dependency for its shortlists and winners on books published by Bertelsmann AG-affiliated Canadian publishing houses, all of which are based in Toronto.
Arguing that the trend towards centralization of Canadian publishing in Toronto has led to a monopolistic control of the Giller Prize by Bertelsmann and its authors, Henighan wrote, "Year after year the vast majority of the books shortlisted for the Giller came from the triumvirate of publishers owned by the Bertelsmann Group: Knopf Canada, Doubleday Canada and Random House Canada. Like the three musketeers, this trio is in fact a quartet: Bertelsmann also owns 25 percent of McClelland & Stewart, and now manages M&S’s marketing."[11] Henighan added that all of the Giller Prize winners from 1994 to 2004, with the exception of Mordecai Richler, lived within a two-hour drive of downtown Toronto.
The article raised debate within the media and in the wider public over the credibility of the Giller Prize.[12][13][14] Henighan revisited that article in 2015.[15]
In 2010, there was much talk about how small presses dominated that year’s shortlist.[16] Montrealer Johanna Skibsrud won the Giller Prize that year for her novel The Sentimentalists, published by independent Gaspereau Press. The company produces books using a 1960s offset printing press and hand-bindery equipment.[17] As a result, while there was great demand for the book in the marketplace, the publisher had trouble keeping up with production.[18] In the end, they turned to Douglas & McIntyre,[19] a large West-coast publisher, to print copies of the book.
The Gaspereau situation prompted an examination within the cultural community about what makes a book and the nature of publishing and marketing books.[20] The book also became the top-selling title for Kobo eReaders, outselling even George W. Bush's memoir Decision Points.[21]
Scotiabank sponsorship controversy
editIn November 2023, a month after the start of Israel's military operation in Gaza, protestors interrupted the Giller ceremony to object to Scotiabank's sponsorship of the prize, given the bank's reported $500m investment in Israel-based arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.[22] In response to their arrests, an open letter was circulated in solidarity with the protestors, which was signed by more than 2,000 people, including past winners, finalists, and jurors of the prize.[23] By March 2024, Scotiabank had divested nearly half of its stake in Elbit Systems.[24]
In July 2024, 19 authors presented a letter withdrawing their books from consideration for that year's prize and demanding the foundation pressure Scotiabank's full divestment from Elbit Systems, as well as ending the sponsorships by the Azrieli Foundation, Indigo, and Audible over their ties to Israel's occupation of Palestine. The letter was also signed by two previous winners of the prize. Dinaw Mengestu–who had was originally set to serve on the jury that year–resigned in response; the following week, the other international juror, Megha Majumdar, did as well.[25][26][27] In the first quarter of 2024, Scotiabank further divested from Elbit Systems by more than $100-million; this makes for a total divestment over the previous year of more than three quarters of its total stake.[28]
Covering the controversy, Marsha Lederman of The Globe and Mail noted that several other Canadian literary awards, including the Amazon.ca First Novel Award and the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction, were not being targeted despite also being sponsored by companies with financial ties to Israel, and suggested that the primary reason for focusing solely on the Giller was that founder Jack Rabinovitch had been Jewish.[29] She also noted that the Giller Foundation does not actually have any meaningful leverage to make demands of Scotiabank, and any attempt to do so would merely result in the award not only losing Scotiabank's sponsorship, but effectively rendering itself into an unsponsorable award as no other major corporation would ever agree to the award imposing political conditions on its participation either.[29] She further doubted that any of this would actually help Palestinians at all.[29]
The 2024 ceremony followed a different format than previous years, being taped for later rebroadcast rather than being aired live, although organizers and the CBC attributed this to increasingly common practice for awards ceremonies (such as the Canadian Screen Awards, which have also been broadcast in recent years as tape-delayed one-hour "highlights" specials rather than full live ceremonies) rather than the protests.[30] Despite this, protestors still picketed the hotel where the ceremony was taking place.[6]
Nominees and winners
edit1990s
edit2000s
edit2010s
edit2020s
editReferences
edit- ^ Literary prize drops name of its sponsor from title after protests over Israel arms link
- ^ "Five vie for Giller Prize". The Globe and Mail. September 28, 2005. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
- ^ "A taste of the glamorous life". The Globe and Mail. April 17, 2009. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
- ^ "The Scotiabank Giller Prize turns 25". The Fulcrum, November 20, 2018.
- ^ "Giller Prize money doubles to $140,000". Toronto Star, September 16, 2014.
- ^ a b Joshua Chong and Abby O'Brien, "Giller Prize 2024: Protesters call literary gala attendees ‘monsters in suits’". Toronto Star, November 18, 2024.
- ^ "Introducing the Five-Member Jury Panel for the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize". Scotiabank Giller Prize, January 14, 2015.
- ^ The Scotiabank Giller Prize: Prize History
- ^ "Public Zoom interview with Giller Prize winner interrupted by barrage of ‘inappropriate images’ and ‘abysmal screeching’". Toronto Star, January 5, 2021.
- ^ "Elana Rabinovitch ready to write the Giller Prize’s next chapter: Govani". Toronto Star, November 12, 2017.
- ^ Stephen Henighan, "Kingmakers". Geist, 2006.
- ^ Shinan Govani (2007-02-28). "An anti-Giller gadfly in Guelph". National Post. Archived from the original on 2007-07-17. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
- ^ Bryony Lewicki (2007-01-23). "Secrets of the Canadian literary cabal". Quillblog. Quill & Quire. Archived from the original on 2008-05-06. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
- ^ Ron Nurwisah (2007-01-23). "Are The Gillers Rigged?". Torontoist. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
- ^ Stephen Henighan (2015-11-06). "How a Giller Prize critic got invited to the party". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
- ^ James Adams (2010-10-05). "The Giller Prize: Could this be the year of the small press?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2010-10-05.
- ^ Gaspereau Press Background
- ^ John Barber (2010-11-10). "Author's angst grows over unavailability of Giller winner". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
- ^ Mark Medley (2010-11-15). "Gaspereau Press teams up with Douglas & McIntyre for The Sentimentalists". National Post. Retrieved 2010-11-15.
- ^ Globe Editorial (2010-11-10). "Giller is enough to drive you to Gasperation". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
- ^ Nick Patch (2010-11-12). "Scarcity of Giller-winning 'Sentimentalists' a boon to eBook sales". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2010-11-12.
- ^ Cramer, Ella (14 November 2023). "Pro-Palestine protesters disrupt Canadian book prize". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
- ^ Neufeld, Josiah (13 June 2024). "How the Giller Prizze Became Associated with Genocide". The Walrus. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ Balu, Nivedita (14 May 2024). "Scotiabank's fund unit halved stake in Israeli weapons maker Elbit, filing shows". Reuters. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ O’KANE, JOSH (10 July 2024). "Authors pull books from Giller Prize consideration over sponsors' ties to Israeli interests". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
- ^ Maimann, Kevin (11 July 2024). "Authors pull books from Giller Prize to protest Scotiabank's investment in Israeli defence contractor". CBC News. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ The Canadian Press (16 July 2024). "Second author withdraws from Scotiabank Giller Prize jury over bank's ties to Israel". Toronto Star. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ O'Kane, Josh (14 August 2024). "Scotiabank subsidiary cuts stake in Israeli arms maker Elbit Systems". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
- ^ a b c Marsha Lederman, "Can protesting the Giller Prize really help end the Gaza war?". The Globe and Mail, July 25, 2024.
- ^ "Giller Prize to proceed Monday under shadow of ongoing boycotts and protests". CBC News, November 18, 2024.
- ^ "Vassanji wins first Giller Prize". Edmonton Journal, November 4, 1994.
- ^ "CanLit heavyweights absent from Giller list; Newer names vie for $25,000 fiction prize". Ottawa Citizen, October 5, 1994.
- ^ Elaine Kalman Naves, "Mistry's storytelling is why he's an award-winner". Montreal Gazette, November 11, 1995.
- ^ "Authors nominated for $25,0000 Giller Prize". Vancouver Sun, October 6, 1995.
- ^ Philip Marchand, "Atwood wins Giller Prize and $25,000". Toronto Star, November 7, 1996.
- ^ Kim Covert, "Island author on Giller list". Victoria Times-Colonist, October 10, 1996.
- ^ Hollie Shaw, "Mordecai Richler wins Giller Prize". Kingston Whig-Standard, November 6, 1997.
- ^ Judy Stoffman, "First novel on Giller Prize list". Toronto Star, October 2, 1997.
- ^ John Goddard, "Alice Munro takes Giller Prize". Telegraph-Journal, November 5, 1998.
- ^ "Gowdy, Munro among Giller prize finalists". St. Catharines Standard, October 6, 1998.
- ^ "Giller winner's publisher among those surprised by victory". Whitehorse Star, November 5, 1999.
- ^ "Giller shortlist announced". Cornwall Standard-Freeholder, October 5, 1999.
- ^ "Richards, Ondaatje share Giller Prize: First tie in award's history". St. Catharines Standard, November 17, 2000.
- ^ "Six nominated for Giller". Guelph Mercury, October 2, 2000.
- ^ Bryan Demchinsky, "Wright for fame: Giller Prize comes after 10 books over 30 years". Victoria Times-Colonist, November 11, 2001.
- ^ "Two GG-nominated authors also on shortlist for Giller". Kamloops Daily News, October 24, 2001.
- ^ "Austin Clarke wins $25,000 Giller prize at Toronto gala". Pembroke Observer, November 7, 2002.
- ^ "Shields, Clarke among five nominees for Giller prize". Sudbury Star, October 5, 2002.
- ^ "M.G. Vassanji wins Giller Prize for fiction for The In-Between World". Prince Rupert Daily News, November 7, 2003.
- ^ James Cowan, "Giller jury names short list: Atwood, MacDonald joined by 'micro- fiction,' others". National Post, October 3, 2003.
- ^ Vanessa Farquharson, "Munro wins Giller Prize for a second time". Vancouver Sun, November 12, 2004.
- ^ Rebecca Caldwell, "Who'll win the Giller?". The Globe and Mail, November 10, 2004.
- ^ "Veteran's story wins Giller Prize". Timmins Daily Press, November 10, 2005.
- ^ "Barfoot, Bergen among authors short listed for lucrative Giller prize". Peterborough Examiner, October 1, 2005.
- ^ "Toronto MD wins Giller". Waterloo Region Record, November 8, 2006.
- ^ "Rawi Hage, Vincent Lam on shortlist for Giller prize". Winnipeg Free Press, October 4, 2006.
- ^ "Locals on longlist of nominees". The Telegram, September 12, 2006.
- ^ Charles Enman, "Still walking on air, but Hay longs to write". Ottawa Citizen, November 10, 2007.
- ^ "Giller Prize shortlist features heavyweights". Windsor Star, October 10, 2007.
- ^ "Fifteen authors on Giller Prize longlist for fiction". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, September 18, 2007.
- ^ Andrea Baillie, "'Through Black Spruce' wins Giller". Telegraph-Journal, November 13, 2008.
- ^ Vit Wagner, "Prize jury chooses 5 books from an open field; Hage, Boyden, De Sa, Swan and Endicott picked as finalists". Toronto Star, October 8, 2008.
- ^ "Ricci, Clarke make Giller long list". Kamloops Daily News, September 20, 2008.
- ^ "Linden MacIntyre wins Scotiabank Giller Prize". Hamilton Spectator, November 11, 2009.
- ^ Vanessa Farquharson, "Familiar names missing from Giller Prize list". Regina Leader-Post, October 7, 2009.
- ^ John Barber, "Women dominate 2009 Giller long list". The Globe and Mail, September 21, 2009.
- ^ John Barber, "Johanna Skibsrud wins Giller Prize for The Sentimentalists". The Globe and Mail, November 9, 2010.
- ^ "Giller prize nominees cut to final five; Former winner David Bergen and Alexander MacLeod on shortlist". Victoria Times-Colonist, October 6, 2010.
- ^ Victoria Ahearn, "Buzzy novel 'The Imperfectionists' among books on Giller prize long list". Canadian Press, September 20, 2010.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Giller Prize is the latest peak for Victoria author in roller-coaster year". Vancouver Sun, November 9, 2011.
- ^ John Barber (October 5, 2011). "Generation Giller: New young writers dominate Canada's richest fiction prize". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on October 5, 2011.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Ondaatje, Vanderhaeghe on Giller Prize longlist". Ottawa Citizen, September 8, 2011.
- ^ Greg Quill, "419 is the lucky number for Ferguson at Gillers". Toronto Star, October 31, 2012.
- ^ Paul Irish (October 1, 2012). "Scotiabank Giller Prize short list announced". Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781.
- ^ "Lyon, Richardson among authors on Giller long list". Prince George Citizen, September 5, 2012.
- ^ Elizabeth Withey, "A 'very surreal' experience; Winning Canada's Giller Prize leaves Edmonton's Coady reeling". Edmonton Journal, November 7, 2013.
- ^ "Giller Prize shortlist announced". Montreal Gazette, October 9, 2013.
- ^ Paul Irish (September 16, 2013). "Scotiabank Giller Prize announces 2013 longlist nominees". Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781.
- ^ Mark Medley (November 10, 2014). "Sean Michaels awarded Giller Prize for his book 'Us Conductors'". The Globe and Mail.
- ^ "Giller shortlist features Miriam Toews, David Bezmozgis among books in battle for $100,000 prize". National Post. October 6, 2014. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014.
- ^ Samantha Sobolewski, "Giller Prize purse doubles to $140K; Winner will take home $100,000". Edmonton Journal, September 17, 2014.
- ^ Ian McGillis, "Andre Alexis wins Giller Prize for Fifteen Dogs". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, November 12, 2015.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Giller Prize announces highly anticipated shortlist". The Globe and Mail, October 5, 2015.
- ^ "Giller Prize releases long list of nominees". Windsor Star, September 10, 2015.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Madeleine Thien’s Do Not Say We Have Nothing wins Giller Prize". The Globe and Mail, November 7, 2016.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Thien, Barwin, Donoghue make Giller Prize shortlist ". The Globe and Mail, September 26, 2016.
- ^ Medley, Mark (2016-09-07). "Emma Donoghue, Mona Awad among 12 Giller Prize nominees". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ Victoria Ahearn (November 20, 2017). "Michael Redhill wins Scotiabank Giller Prize". CTV News.
- ^ "5 finalists for 2017 Giller Prize revealed". CBC News, October 2, 2017.
- ^ Mark Medley, "Three first-time authors make Giller Prize longlist". The Globe and Mail, September 18, 2017.
- ^ Adina Bresge (November 19, 2018). "Esi Edugyan wins Scotiabank Giller Prize for 'Washington Black'". CTV News.
- ^ Deborah Dundas (October 1, 2018). "Esi Edugyan, Patrick deWitt among finalists for $100,000 Giller Prize". Toronto Star.
- ^ "Esi Edugyan, Patrick deWitt, Tanya Tagaq among 12 authors longlisted for 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books, September 17, 2018.
- ^ "Ian Williams wins the 2019 Scotiabank Giller prize for debut novel". CBC News. November 18, 2019.
- ^ Deborah Dundas, "Michael Crummey, Ian Williams are in, Margaret Atwood and André Alexis are out on Giller Prize short list". Toronto Star, September 30, 2019.
- ^ Deborah Dundas, "Margaret Atwood, Andre Alexis among 12 authors up for $100,000 Giller book prize". Toronto Star, September 3, 2019.
- ^ "Souvankham Thammavongsa wins $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize for short story collection How to Pronounce Knife". CBC Books, November 9, 2020.
- ^ "3 novels, 2 short story collections shortlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books. 2020-10-05. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ Deborah Dundas, "Thomas King, Emma Donoghue make the 2020 Giller Longlist in a year marked by firsts". toronto Star, September 8, 2020.
- ^ Adina Bresge (November 8, 2021). "Omar El Akkad wins $100K Giller Prize for 'What Strange Paradise'". CTV News.
- ^ Adina Bresge (October 5, 2021). "Two-time runner-up Miriam Toews among authors on Giller Prize shortlist". The Globe and Mail.
- ^ "Miriam Toews, Omar El Akkad & Katherena Vermette among 12 authors longlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books. October 1, 2021.
- ^ Brad Wheeler, "Suzette Mayr wins the $100,000 Giller Prize". The Globe and Mail, November 7, 2022.
- ^ Deborah Dundas, "Rawi Hage, Suzette Mayr among five finalists for the 2022 Giller Prize worth $100,000". Toronto Star, September 27, 2022.
- ^ "14 Canadian authors longlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books. 2022-09-16. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
- ^ Brad Wheeler, "Sarah Bernstein wins 2023 Scotiabank Giller Prize for fiction". The Globe and Mail, November 13, 2023.
- ^ "5 Canadian authors shortlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books. 2023-10-11. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ "12 Canadian books make longlist for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books, September 6, 2023.
- ^ Brad Wheeler, "Anne Michaels wins the 2024 Giller Prize for her generations-spanning novel Held". The Globe and Mail, November 18, 2024.
- ^ Cassandra Drudi, "Giller Prize announces five-title shortlist for 2024 prize". Quill & Quire, October 9, 2024.
- ^ "12 Canadian books make 2024 longlist for $100K Giller Prize". CBC Books, September 4, 2024.