When the finalists for the 2011 Lambda Literary Awards were
announced March 16, Canadians got a major boost.
The names of queer canucks — including Zoe Whittall, S
Bear Bergman, Vivek Shraya, Daniel Allen Cox, Amber Dawn, Jen Currin, Anna
Swanson and Richard Labonté — were sprinkled liberally throughout
the Lambda's
24 shortlists.
Zoe Whittall's
Holding Still for As Long as Possible
(House of Anansi) is a double finalist, in both the best lesbian fiction and best trans fiction
categories. Her book tells the story of a trio of rootless 20-somethings in
Toronto's west end.
Zoe Whittall (Jenna Wakani photo)
S Bear Bergman co-edited — with Kate Bornstein — Gender
Outlaws: The Next Generation (Seal Press), which was also shortlisted in two
categories: best transgender nonfiction and best LGBT anthology.
The Lambda awards are international, honouring books by
and about lesbian, gay, bi and trans people. Winners will be announced May 26
in New York.
For further reading, check out our reviews of Dawn's novel Sub Rosa and Currin's poetry collection The Inquisition Yours, plus recent interviews with Vivek Shraya and Zoe Whittall.
Cox and Bergman are both contributors to Xtra, and Whittall contributes to QueeriesMag. Read some of Cox's columns here and here, or check out Bergman on queer parenting and the Trocks.
