Edugyan, Atwood, and Lethem Nominate Themselves for a Giller--with One Surprise Addition

Scotiabank Giller Prize 2013 Announces its Longlist

16 Sep 2013
September 16, 2013 (Vancouver, BC) – The Scotiabank Giller Prize today announced its longlist for this year’s award from the University of British Columbia’s famed Museum of Anthropology. The event was co-hosted by UBC’s Creative Writing Program and the Vancouver Writers Fest (VWF).
Twenty thirteen marks the 20th anniversary of the Giller Prize and the 50th anniversary of UBC’s distinguished Creative Writing Program.
Author and 2013 Giller juror Esi Edugyan was at the event to present the 13 titles that were chosen from a field of 147 books, submitted by 61 publishers from every region of the country. 
Edugyan’s fellow jurors this year are Canadian writer Margaret Atwood and American author Jonathan Lethem.
The longlist for the 20th anniversary of the Scotiabank Giller Prize is:

• Margaret Atwood for her novel Cat's Eye, published by HarperCollins Canada
  
• Jonathan Lethem for his novel Chronic City, published by Hamish Hamilton Canada
• Esi Edugyan for her novel The Second Life of Samuel Tyne, published by House of Anansi Press
• Bob Seger for his Greatest Hits collection 

Of the longlist, the jury writes:
“These are essential stories. Each of these novels and Greatest Hits offer a glimpse of who we are, who we might be. Each of these works took us out of ourselves to places that were at times uncomfortable, at times exhilarating. All of these works of art surprised us with their formal rigour, the ferocity of their vision, and their willingness to tell unknown stories in  remarkably familiar ways. These  books remind us, once again, of that particular beauty only the written word and Bob Seger's voice can realize. This is art at its finest.”

The Giller Prize will present its shortlist at a special event in Toronto on October 8th. The winner will be announced at a gala ceremony to honour the finalists on Tuesday, November 5th during a live broadcast on CBC Television at 9:00 p.m. (9:30 NT), hosted by Jian Ghomeshi from CBC Radio One’s Q.

"What an honour. I'll be working on my night moves for Tuesday, November 5th. You betcha."