Indigenous author, comedian leads way with four Sask Book Award nominations
- EFN Staff | February 17, 2018
As has been the case the past couple of years, there is a strong presence from Indigenous authors at the 2018 Saskatchewan Book Awards.
Dawn Dumont was recently shortlisted in four awards for her latest book, Glass Beads. The 25th Saskatchewan Book Awards (SBA) recently announced the shortlist on Friday in Regina and Saskatoon. Dumont’s book is nominated for Book of the Year, Muslims for Peace and Justice Fiction Award, City of Saskatoon and Public Library Saskatoon Book Award and Indigenous Peoples’ Writing – more than any other author this year. In 2015, she was also nominated for four awards and won the Saskatchewan Book for Fiction for Rose’s Run. She is also the author of Nobody Cries at Bingo and a regular columnist for Eagle Feather News, in addition to being a comedian.
Kenneth T. Williams’ latest play, In Care, is also shortlisted for the Indigenous Peoples’ Writing Award. Emerging poet Tenille Campbell is shortlisted for two awards, showcasing her remarkable talent in her book #IndianLovePoems. Mika Lafond is also shortlisted for an award for her first book, nipê wânîn. The University of Regina Press (U of R Press) has a few Indigenous titles that were shortlisted for the Publishing in Education Award which include; Aaniiih/Gros Ventre Stories, compiled and edited by Terry Brockie and Andrew Cowell and Claiming Anishinaabe by Lynn Gehl.
“We are celebrating 25 years of excellence in writing and publishing in Saskatchewan this year,” said SBA Executive Director Courtney Bates-Hardy in a media release. “We’re very proud of this year’s shortlist, and we’re looking forward to celebrating with everyone at the Awards Ceremony.”
The SBA 13 award categories offered this year are diverse, representative of Saskatchewan’s literary production, and responsive to emerging areas of interest. The award winners are determined through a selective jury process and will be announced at this year’s ceremony on Saturday, April 28, 2018 at the Conexus Arts Centre in Regina. The ceremony will be hosted by Zarqa Nawaz, creator of Little Mosque on the Prairie and author of Laughing All the Way to the Mosque. Kara Golemba was recently announced as this year’s featured musician.