A Controversial Canada Reads
On October 28, the 2011 Canada Reads long list was announced. This year there have been a couple of changes to the normal procedure that are not without controversy. As it is the tenth anniversary of the program, only books published since January 1, 2000 were eligible. What’s more, former winners are also eligible and with the exception of last year’s Read Nikolski by Nicolas Dickner, they all made the long list.
Changes in the selection process have been widely debated. In previous years five titles have been selected and defended by individual members of a panel. For the 2011 contest, however, the public was invited to nominate specific titles. Those novels with enough popular support were selected for the long list. Critics of the process fear that that it favours best-sellers and charge that authors who are comfortable with image management and skilled at using social media have a distinct advantage over those who are less disposed to self-promotion.
Still, objections aside, it is an interesting list. While mainstream novels dominate, nine of the titles were published by small or medium sized presses. Two graphic novels have been included–Skim by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki and The Essex County Trilogy by Jeff Lemire.
The complete list is available at Canada Reads. Voting for the ten title shortlist is underway and results will be announced on November 9.
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