2017 GGBooks winners announced

Hynes’s portrait of Johnny Keough is an act of full-throttle imagination and narrative invention. Johnny is a startlingly original creation. His hilarious yet disturbing journey from St. John’s to Vancouver is unforgettable, tragic and ultimately transcendent.

Darren Greer, Robert Hough, Padma Viswanathan

In these moving poems about the father/son relationship set against the Alberta flood of 2013, Richard Harrison’s intimate yet open voice deftly explores subjects as wide-ranging as childhood, middle-age anxiety, dementia and loss with wonder, humour and resilience.

Nina Berkhout, Evelyn Lau, Douglas Burnet Smith

Indian Arm is a timely and evocative manifestation of the characters’ struggle with their relationship to the land. Hiro Kanagawa masterfully navigates the tension between Indigenous and settler identities as they work to figure out how we can live together. Mythic. Heart-breaking. Poetic.

Alanis King, Bruce McManus, Erin Shields

The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State by Graeme Wood investigates a much discussed, little understood phenomenon dominating international news. Meticulously researched and fluidly written, this bracing book delves into a contentious facet of contemporary geopolitics.

Elaine Kalman Naves, JJ Lee, Ray Robertson

The Marrow Thieves is speculative fiction with a chilling immediacy. Its unflinching narrative resonates in our disturbing times. Cherie Dimaline’s exceptional writing and authentic characters pull you into a story that lingers and unsettles.

Cheryl Foggo, Alma Fullerton, Kevin Major

When We Were Alone is a poignant story of a dark and unforgettable part of Canadian history. David A. Robertson gently links the residential school experiences to a new generation with an enduring example of healing, love and understanding. Julie Flett’s simple but profound illustrations expertly complement the text and elevate this important story.

Danielle Daniel, Robert Heidbreder, Brenda Jones

In Readopolis, Oana Avasilichioaei has risen to and matched the stylistic acrobatics of Bertrand Laverdure’s Lectodôme. The many voices of Quebecois writing sing through in this intelligent translation – a vertiginous ode to the pure, if rarely rewarded, pursuit of literature.

Robert Majzels, Jessica Moore, Glen Nichols

In Le poids de la neige, a decidedly Nordic novel, the ubiquitous snow swallows up the country and the people. Against an apocalyptic background, the tension is unrelenting. Minor and major fears are exacerbated, like the dread of betrayal. The poetry in Christian Guay-Poliquin’s writing keeps us spellbound to the end of winter.

Julie Hétu, Monia Mazigh, Yvon Paré

In full command of her art, Louise Dupré goes straight to the heart of her own contradiction with La main hantée, adopting a position of extreme risk. She embraces the dark side of human nature, calls upon the living, and produces a work that is an appeal to tenderness, with the poem always at its call.

Valérie Forgues, Hélène Harbec, Lenous Suprice

Senility and deliberate aphasia are now on the menu for Quebec families on their poutine Sundays. That is the provocative observation advanced by Sébastien David in Dimanche napalm, an incendiary play that blows on the embers of memories of recent events. Unforgettable characters who might well sink into the exploding gravy.

Marcelo Arroyo, Robert Claing, Dominique Lafon

Clothed in nostalgia and the poetry of life, this enlightening essay offers a comprehensive look at the relations between the North American landmass and the people who populate it. Its colourful language combines with the tenderness of its gaze in celebration of history, both minor and major.

Maxime Catellier, Jean Morency, Claire Varin

With an agitated but effective writing style that has a humorous edge, Véronique Drouin’s L’importance de Mathilde Poisson immerses us in the questioning of adolescence. Despite the dark theme, this novel is full of light. Life becomes easier to live when we learn to love ourselves.

Sandra Dussault, Micheline Marchand, Sylvain Meunier

Jacques Goldstyn achieves the difficult goal of discussing a serious subject with a touch of poetry. Both images and text strike a fine balance in accurately communicating the emotions of the story. Azadah brings out the power of a dream, and the importance of finding ways to make it a reality.

Édith Bourget, Anne-Claire Delisle, Yayo

With a sober and direct style that holds us spellbound, the translator masters the information in the original text and reconstructs it in French. It gives the impression that the translator is like a journalist who has taken the same journey as the author.

Jude Des Chênes, Louise Ladouceur, Robert Paquin