The Scotiabank Giller Prize was founded in 1994 by Jack Rabinovitch in memory of his late wife, Doris Giller. The prize is awarded each year to the author of the best Canadian novel or story collection published in English.

In 2005, The Giller Prize partnered with Scotiabank to create The Scotiabank Giller Prize. It is the first ever co-sponsorship for Canada’s richest award for literary fiction.

Jack Rabinovitch himself was once a Labourer-Teacher for Frontier College and has shown his support for the Scotiabank Giller Light Bash from the very beginning. For more information on the Scotiabank Giller Prize, visit www.scotiabankgillerprize.ca.

View the Soctiabank Giller Prize Long List here

The 2011 jury is made up of: award-winning Canadian writer and 2009 Giller finalist Annabel Lyon; American author, memoirist and Guggenheim fellow Howard Norman; and acclaimed UK playwright and prize-winning novelist Andrew O’Hagan.

Two thousand and eleven marks the 18th year of the prize.

The 143 books of fiction received this year represent a nearly 50% increase in submissions received in any other year since the prize was incepted in 1994.

From a large and highly competitive field, the Scotiabank Giller Prize jury selected the following titles for this year’s longlist:

• David Bezmozgis for his novel THE FREE WORLD, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
  
• Clarke Blaise for his short story collection THE MEAGRE TARMAC, Biblioasis
  
• Lynn Coady for her novel THE ANTAGONIST, House of Anansi Press
  
• Michael Christie for his short story collection THE BEGGAR’S GARDEN, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
  
• Patrick DeWitt for his novel THE SISTERS BROTHERS, House of Anansi Press
  
• *Myrna Dey for her novel EXTENSIONS, NeWest Press
  
• Esi Edugyan for her novel HALF-BLOOD BLUES, Thomas Allen Publishers
  
• Marina Endicott for her novel THE LITTLE SHADOWS, Doubleday Canada
  
• Zsuzsi Gartner for her short story collection BETTER LIVING THROUGH PLASTIC EXPLOSIVES, Hamish Hamilton Canada
  
• Genni Gunn for her novel SOLITARIA, Signature Editions
  
• Pauline Holdstock for her novel INTO THE HEART OF THE COUNTRY, HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
  
• Wayne Johnston for his novel A WORLD ELSEWHERE, Knopf Canada
  
• Dany Laferrière for his novel THE RETURN (translation, David Homel), Douglas & McIntyre
  
• Suzette Mayr for her novel MONOCEROS, Coach House Books
  
• Michael Ondaatje for his novel THE CAT’S TABLE, McClelland & Stewart
  
• Guy Vanderhaeghe for his novel A GOOD MAN, McClelland & Stewart
  
• Alexi Zentner for his novel TOUCH, Knopf Canada
  
• *READERS’ CHOICE 

The shortlisted finalists will be revealed at a news conference in Toronto on Tuesday, October 4th. The winner will be announced at a gala ceremony in Toronto on November 8, 2011, broadcast on CBC Television.