Annabel Lyon

Not to be confused with the American ballet dancer Annabelle Lyon.
Annabel Lyon
Born1971 (age 52–53)
Brampton, Ontario, Canada
OccupationNovelist and short-story writer
EducationSimon Fraser University (BA) University of British Columbia (MFA)

Annabel Lyon (born 1971)[1] is a Canadian novelist and short-story writer. She has published two collections of short fiction, two young adult novels, and two adult historical novels, The Golden Mean and its sequel, The Sweet Girl.

Life and work

Born in Brampton, Ontario, Lyon grew up in Coquitlam, British Columbia, where she and her family moved when she was a year old.[1][2] She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy at Simon Fraser University and an MFA in Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia.[1] In addition, she attended the University of British Columbia's Faculty of Law for one year.[1]

Lyon published her first book, Oxygen, a collection of stories, in 2000. The Best Thing for You, a collection of three novellas, followed in 2004 and was nominated for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize.[1]

Her first novel, The Golden Mean, which imagines the relationship between Alexander the Great and his teacher, Aristotle, was published in 2009. It held the distinction of being the only book nominated that year for all three of Canada's major fiction prizes: the Scotiabank Giller Prize,[3] the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction,[4] and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.[5] Of the three, she won the Rogers Prize.[6] The book has been translated into six languages.[7] A sequel, The Sweet Girl, which explores the life of Aristotle's daughter, Pythias, was published in September 2012.[8]

Her novel Consent was longlisted for the Giller Prize in 2020.[9]

She lives in New Westminster, British Columbia, one of 13 cities in Metro Vancouver.

Awards and honors

Awards for Lyon's writing
Year Title Award Result Ref.
2005 The Best Thing for You Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize Shortlist [1]
2009 The Golden Mean Giller Prize Shortlist [3]
2009 The Golden Mean Governor General's Award for English-language fiction Finalist [4]
2009 The Golden Mean Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize Winner [6]
2010 The Golden Mean Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize Shortlist
2012 The Sweet Girl Giller Prize Longlist [10]
2020 Consent Giller Prize Longlist [9]
2021 Consent Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize Shortlist [11][12]

Bibliography

Short fiction

  • Oxygen (2000) McClelland & Stewart
  • The Best Thing for You (2004) McClelland & Stewart
  • Saturday Night Function (2004) Biblioasis
  • Imagining ancient women. 2012. Henry Kreisel Memorial Lecture Series, University of Alberta Press

Novels

  • All-Season Edie (2009) Orca Book Publishers ISBN 978-1-55143-713-2
  • The Golden Mean (2009) Random House Canada ISBN 978-0-307-35620-8
  • Encore Edie (2010) Puffin Canada
  • The Sweet Girl (2012) Random House Canada ISBN 978-0-307-35944-5
  • Consent (2020)

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wunker, Erin (April 15, 2014). "Annabel Lyon". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 2022-12-01. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  2. ^ Lederman, Marsha (2009-10-21). "Annabel Lyon: CanLit's newest golden girl". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 2009-11-23. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  3. ^ a b Farquharson, Vanessa. "Familiar names missing from Giller Prize list". Regina Leader-Post, October 7, 2009.
  4. ^ a b Adrian Chamberlain, "Bookstore clerk's first offering vies with Alice Munro for top prize". Victoria Times-Colonist, October 15, 2009.
  5. ^ "Annabel Lyon wins Writer's Trust award". The Globe and Mail. 2009-11-25. Archived from the original on 2009-11-28. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  6. ^ a b Lederman, Marsha (2009-10-21). "Annabel Lyon: CanLit's newest golden girl". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 2009-11-23. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  7. ^ "Annabel Lyon author biography". BookBrowse. Archived from the original on 2019-04-28. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  8. ^ "The Sweet Girl: Aristotle's other, forgotten child". The Globe and Mail. 2012-09-21. Archived from the original on 2021-01-26. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  9. ^ a b Dundas, Deborah (2020-09-08). "Thomas King, Emma Donoghue make the 2020 Giller longlist in a year marked by firsts". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  10. ^ "Lyon, Richardson among authors on Giller long list". Prince George Citizen, September 5, 2012.
  11. ^ Porter, Ryan (2021-04-08). "Eight shortlists announced for BC and Yukon Book Prizes". Quill and Quire. Archived from the original on 2022-08-08. Retrieved 2023-04-22.
  12. ^ Takeuchi, Craig (2021-04-08). "B.C. and Yukon Book Prize shortlists announced for 2021". The Georgia Straight. Archived from the original on 2021-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-22.