The Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick (WFNB) and The Fiddlehead have announced the shortlisted titles for the 7th annual New Brunswick Book Awards. The winners will be revealed at an awards ceremony on Saturday, June 4, as part of WFNB’s annual WordSpring writing festival in Fredericton.
The program will celebrate books published in the 2021 calendar year in the poetry, fiction, nonfiction and children’s picture books categories.
The finalists are as follows:
Mrs. Dunster’s Award for Fiction
Judge: Richard Cumyn is the author of nine books of fiction, most recently The Sign for Migrant Soul, and a past fiction editor of The Antigonish Review.
Amber McMillan, The Running Tree (Goose Lane Editions), Fredericton
Beth Powning, The Sister’s Tale (Knopf Canada), Markhamville
Valerie Sherrard, Birdspell (DCB/Cormorant Books), Miramichi
Alice Kitts Memorial Award for Excellence in Children’s Writing
Judge: Author of over 27 books, Dr. Kari-Lynn Winters is a children’s author, playwright, performer, and scholar.
Jodie Callaghan,Ga’s The Train (Second Story Press), Campbellton; translated by Joe Wilmot, and illustrated Georgia Lesley
Leo LaFleur, The Errand: The Queen (Simply Read Books), Saint John; illustrated by Adam Oehlers
Riel Nason, Disaster at the Highland Games (Chocolate River Publishing), Quispamsis; illustrated by Nathasha Pilotte
The Fiddlehead Poetry Book Prize
Judge: An editor atRoommagazine, Isabella Wang is the author of the chapbook, On Forgetting a Language and her full-length debut, Pebble Swing.
Triny Finlay, Myself a Paperclip (Goose Lane Editions), Fredericton
Rebecca Salazar,sulphurtongue (McClelland & Stewart), Fredericton
Jane Tims,a glimpse of waterfall (Indie published), Rusagonis
Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick Nonfiction Award
Judge: Julie Sedivy is a language scientist, editor, and award-winning writer of nonfiction whose work crosses and recombines scientific and literary genres.
Michael Boudreau and Bonnie Huskins, Just the Usual Work: The Social Worlds of Ida Martin, Working-Class Diarist (McGill-Queen’s University Press), Fredericton
Janet Coulter Sanford, Memories on the Bounty: A Story of Friendship, Love, and Adventure (Nimbus), Moncton
Martha Vowles, Senior Management: Parenting My Parents (Nevermore Press), Grand-Bay Westfield
The New Brunswick Book Awards are open to traditionally published and self-published authors who have lived in the province for three of the last five years, including the award year.
The book awards program represents a partnership between the Writers’ Federation, which for more than 30 years has passionately supported the development of home-grown writers at all stages of development, and The Fiddlehead, Canada’s oldest literary magazine, which has nurtured New Brunswick’s literary culture for more than 75 years.