Neil Smith (writer)

Neil Smith
Born1964
Montreal, Quebec
Occupationwriter
NationalityCanadian
Period2000s-present
Notable worksBang Crunch, Boo, Jones
Notable awardsHugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction

Neil Smith (born 1964) is a Canadian writer and translator from Montreal, Quebec.[1] His novel Boo, published in 2015,[2] won the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction.[3] Boo was also nominated for a Sunburst Award[4] and the Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book Award,[5] and was longlisted for the Prix des libraires du Québec.

Smith published his debut book, the short story collection Bang Crunch, in 2007.[6] It was chosen as a best book of the year by the Washington Post and The Globe and Mail, won the McAuslan First Book Prize from the Quebec Writers' Federation,[7] and was a finalist for the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction. Three stories in the book were also nominated for the Journey Prize.[8]

Smith also has a degree in translation and translates from French to English.[9] The Goddess of Fireflies, his translation of Geneviève Pettersen's novel La déesse des mouches à feu, was nominated for the Governor General's Award for French to English translation at the 2016 Governor General's Awards.[10]

His newest book of fiction, the novel Jones, was released in August 2022. It is the harrowing story of a pair of siblings attempting to survive the horror show of their family.[11] It, too, was nominated for the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction.[12]

  1. ^ "Nice and easy does it". Quill & Quire, Winter 2007.
  2. ^ Nicholas Cameron, "Review: Neil Smith’s Boo is a novel of tremendous imagination". The Globe and Mail, May 22, 2015.
  3. ^ Ian McGillis, "Neil Smith, Anita Anand, David McGimpsey honoured at QWF Awards". Montreal Gazette, November 19, 2015.
  4. ^ Erin Balser, "Gemma Files wins 2016 Sunburst Award for "uniquely Canadian" novel". CBC Books, July 13, 2017.
  5. ^ Becky Robertson, "Awards: Canadian Library Association names 2016 YA Book Award finalists". Quill & Quire, March 2, 2016.
  6. ^ John Burns, "Bang Crunch: First fiction by Neil Smith". The Georgia Straight, January 24, 2007.
  7. ^ "Montreal's Heather O'Neill wins Quebec book prize". CBC Arts, November 22, 2007.
  8. ^ Gordon Bowness, "In print: Neil Smith’s Bang Crunch". Daily Xtra, January 31, 2007.
  9. ^ Michael Posner, "Getting bang for his pluck". The Globe and Mail, March 5, 2007.
  10. ^ Mark Medley, "Governor-General’s Literary Award short list a serious case of déjà vu". The Globe and Mail, October 4, 2016.
  11. ^ Robert J. Wiersema (August 19, 2022). "'Jones' may be a common name, but Neil Smith's new novel is uncommonly powerful". Toronto Star.
  12. ^ "Quebec Writers' Federation Literary Awards return with a plot twist".