This year there are 16 Canadian books on the International Dublin Literary Award longlist.
8 Canadian books on the list that I’ve read and reviewed
(Click on the book titles to see my reviews.)
Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien – winner of the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize and 2016 Governor General’s Literary Award, shortlisted for the 2016 Man Booker Prize
The Break by Katherena Vermette – finalist for the 2016 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, finalist for 2016 Canada Reads
Transit by Rachel Cusk – shortlisted for the 2017 Scotiabank Giller Prize
13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl by Mona Awad – shortlisted for the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize
The Wonder by Emma Donoghue – shortlisted for the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize
This Marlowe by Michelle Butler Hallett – a “Very Best” book for 2016 at The Miramichi Reader
The Party Wall by Catherine Leroux – winner of the 2016 Governor General’s Literary Award for Translation, shortlisted for the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize
Flannery by Lisa Moore – finalist for the Ann Connor Brimer Award for Children’s Literature
8 Canadian books on the list I haven’t read
The Island of Books by Dominique Fortier – review at Montreal Review of Books
The Parcel by Anosh Irani – review at the Quill&Quire, 2016 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize nominee, 2017 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize nominee
The Conjoined by Jen Sookfong Lee – review at The Globe and Mail, 2017 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize nominee
Niagara Motel by Ashley Little – review at Malcolm Avenue Review, 2017 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize nominee
By Gaslight by Steven Price – reviews at Bookish Beck and Buried in Print, shortlisted for the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize
Today I Learned It Was You by Edward Riche – review at The Indextrious Reader
The Last Half of the Year by Paul Rowe – review at The Miramichi Reader
All That Man Is by David Szalay – review at The New York Times, 2016 Man Booker Prize nominee
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The only non-Canadian book on the list that I’ve read is Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (which I loved).
Have you read any of these? Any thoughts on the list? Books you’re surprised to see, or not to see?
The list of Canadian books on the International Dublin Literary Awards from 2017
Consumed by Ink 
I think I worked out that I’d at least sampled 32 books on the longlist. And boy is it a long list! Thanks for linking to my By Gaslight review…even though I only skimmed that one! 😉 I’ve also read the Thien, Szalay and Donoghue.
I knew there was a blogger who had read the Szalay – I just couldn’t remember who! And, conveniently, the Thien is in the same post. I’ll add it here for anyone who wants to pop over. 🙂
https://bookishbeck.wordpress.com/2016/10/24/polishing-off-the-booker-prize-shortlist/
That’s a good score. Why did I not remember your review of The Party Wall when my partner was in Montreal??!!
The Party Wall is excellent! It’s hard to remember them all… 🙂
I must check out this year’s long list. I have always felt that if you had the time to read thorough each year’s long list you could really call yourself well read.
Now *that* would be impressive. But you’d never have time to read anything else! (Although, maybe you wouldn’t feel the need to?)
I suppose it would depend on how varied the list was. I do like a fair sprinkling of crime fiction in my reading diet and not many of those seem to get nominated.
True!
There is very little on the longlist that I’ve read, perhaps not surprising, considering how long the list is. But that is precisely why I love it. It truly is a LONGLIST. 🙂
I love it, too. It’s a good chance to get a quick look at new books from other countries. And it’s nice to see a bunch of countries and languages all mixed up together!
Do you have any favorites? I have only read The Wonder and Do Not Say We Have Nothing.
Yes! Out of the ones I’ve read, my favourites are The Party Wall, Do Not Say We Have Nothing, and The Break.
I didn’t look at the whole list, just at the ones you’ve read. I might go look at it later.
Thanks for the links, Naomi!
🙂
Oh wow – thanks for writing about this list – it’s so fun to see what’s nominated and I do such a bad job of being aware of translated works that this is nice to peruse. I’ve only read 7 on the list but quite a few are on my TBR.
I always want to read so many of these books, but realistically I probably will never get to most of them. But it’s fun to dream!
Today I Learned it Was You has interested me for awhile, I saw the author read and I thought the book sounded hilarious. And the cover is so cool!!!
I’ve had Rare Birds on my shelf for a long time, so I should probably read that one first. I’ve heard it’s funny, too!
As little up to date reading that I’m doing, I’m surprised that I’ve actually read three of the eight that you have: The Break, The Wonder, and Flannery. (I love Lisa Moore’s writing.)
Of the ones that you have not read, I’m intrigued by the cover & title of Niagara Motel; having lived in the region for over three decades draws me to anything with the Niagara ‘stamp’.
The cover of The Last Half of the Year (trucks again!) and the synopses of that book and of All That Man Is have put both on my ‘Books of Interest’ list.
I love the way you break down this huge list each year. Thanks for wading through it. 🙂
Thanks, Debbie!
I’m starting to think we are drawn to the same types of books. Both the Niagara book and the Last Half of the Year are ones that stick out for me, too!
By Gaslight is a long one. Haven’t read it but heard the author read from it. I’m thinking I should read The Break since I’ve seen it everywhere. Interesting list.
Yes, definitely read The Break! I can’t advise you on By Gaslight, however, since I still haven’t read it. I need to be ready for it – but then I wonder, when will that be?!
I hate, hate, HATED 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl. What a horrible, derogatory, misleading book.
I remember! 😉
What a great roundup! We’ve read all the same ones, and I’ve also read The Parcel and By Gaslight (thanks for linking to my post on that one – so kind). As for whether I’m surprised or not surprised, I find this award a happy mystery; it’s not one I follow closely these days but I’m wondering whether I should change that as some of these Canadian authors they’ve included are just SO good that I’m figuring the other country’s representatives are also remarkable. The one I keep overlooking but really really want to read is Dominique Fortier’s novel. I absolutely loved her Wonder (as opposed to the Donoghue title here, The Wonder).
I’m just remembering that she’s also the one whose debut novel is about Sir John Franklin and his wife Jane. Now I want to read all three!
I don’t follow this one closely either, mainly because it’s just so huge. But it’s always fun to see which Canadian authors made it onto the list. I do have a look at all the others, but the huge amount of them feels too overwhelming to start making any lists!