The Writers’ Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador has announced the finalists for the prestigious Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards (NLBAs). This year, the Awards honour excellence in the categories of Fiction and Children’s/Young Adult.
Finalists for the 2018 Bruneau Family Children’s/Young Adult Award
- LORI DOODY for The Puffin Problem (Running the Goat, Books and Broadsides)
- SHEILAH LUKINS for Full Speed Ahead: Errol’s Bell Island Adventure (Breakwater Books)
- REBECCA NORTH for Elliot and the Impossible Fish (Breakwater Books)
Jury Members: Theresa Uchechi Ezeuko, Catherine Hogan-Safer, Susan MacDonald
Public readings by the finalists will take place as follows:
Children’s/Young Adult: Thursday, August 30th at 6:30 pm, AC Hunter Children’s Library, Arts & Culture Centre, 125 Allandale Rd, St. John’s NL. Hosted by Rogers TV’s Don-E Coady. After the readings, children may enjoy balloon twisting & arts and crafts in an adjacent room.
The winning authors will be announced at a ceremony on Wednesday, September 5th at Government House in St. John’s. Each winner will receive a cash prize of $1500, with the remaining finalists to receive $500 each.
The Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards are held annually by the Writers’ Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador (WANL) to recognize excellence in writing by authors resident in Newfoundland and Labrador, under the distinguished patronage of The Honourable Judy Foote, Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The 2018 NLBAs were made possible by the generous support of Killick Capital and the Bruneau Family. We also wish to thank Rogers TV, NL Public Libraries, the City of St. John’s, The Telegram, Perfect Day, NL Teachers’ Association, and Broken Books for their kind contributions, as well as Angela Antle and Don-E Coady for giving their time to host our shortlist readings.
What the jury members said about the shortlisted books:
LORI DOODY, The Puffin Problem
“Doody’s story has a good framework; a delightful book full of whimsy and cleverness. The author was able to capture an invasion scenario and was able to sustain the story with a good outline from the beginning, middle, and end.”
SHEILAH LUKINS, Full Speed Ahead: Errol’s Bell Island Adventure
“Great adventure, very intriguing, with lots of humour to keep the reader cracking up in laughter. The author was able to work through different emotions of the key character while keeping the story consistent and engaging.”
REBECCA NORTH, Elliot and the Impossible Fish
“Great story to keep a child reader excited with an intriguing ending. The words have a musical cadence that will make it a terrific story to read aloud. Presence of significant details in the series of actions and events to keep the child reader thrilled.”
| Media Contact: Jen Winsor, Executive Director Tel 709-739-5215 | director@wanl.ca |