Montrealers Sarah Bernstein and Kasia Von Schaik find themselves in the first selection for the 2023 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
This is not the first prestigious nomination for Bernstein’s book, Study for Obedience, which also finds itself in the long list of Booker Prize contenders.
The author is originally from Montreal, but now lives in Scotland.
Kasia Von Schaik, a McGill University doctoral student born in South Africa, also appears in the first selection with her collection of short stories We Have Never Lived On Earth.
Last year’s winner, Suzette Mayr, unveiled the list in St. John’s, Newfoundland at an event to kick off the Canadian Literary Prize’s 30th anniversary.
Among the other authors in the running, we find David Bergen, a regular at the competition, who notably won the prize in 2005 for The Time In Between. He was selected this time for his novel Away From The Dead.
Prize organizers say the 12 titles were chosen from a record 145 books submitted by publishers across Canada. The finalists for the award will be announced on October 11.
The Giller Prize awards $100,000 to the author of the best Canadian novel, graphic novel or collection of short stories published in English, and $10,000 to each of the finalists.
The winner will be announced on November 13 during a broadcast on CBC and the CBC Gem streaming service.
