Lauded author Whitehead to visit Winnipeg

Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author Colson Whitehead visits Winnipeg for the first time this summer in an event to celebrate the release of his forthcoming novel Cool Machine, which publishes July 21.

Buy on mcnallyrobinson.com

The latest by the author of The Nickel Boys and The Underground Railroad concludes his Harlem trilogy (which includes 2021’s Harlem Shuffle and 2023’s Crook Manifesto), dropping the reader back into the world of crook turned furniture salesman Ray Carney — this time in the 1980s.

The event takes place on Tuesday, Aug. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Muriel Richardson Auditorium at WAG-Qaumajuq (300 Memorial Blvd.) and is presented by McNally Robinson Booksellers. Tickets are $46 plus fees per person, and include a signed hardcover copy of Cool Machine.

For more information and to buy tickets, see wfp.to/iMM.

● ● ●

Canadian journalist Lyse Doucet has won the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction for her book The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan.

The book examines Afghanistan’s history through the lens of the first luxury hotel, the Inter-Continental, and the people who have stayed and worked there.

Buy on mcnallyrobinson.com

Doucet is the second Canadian to win the 30,000-pound prize (around $55,000) — in 2024 Naomi Klein won the non-fiction prize for Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World.

Buy on mcnallyrobinson.com

This year’s fiction prize went to American novelist Virginia Evans for her novel The Correspondent.

Buy on mcnallyrobinson.com

● ● ●

In other lucrative-book-prize news, American writer Hanif Abdurraqib has won the $75,000 Weston International Award, presented by the Writers’ Trust of Canada.

The $75,000 prize is awarded to an author for their body of work, and is selected in a two-step process — an international advisory committee of three curates a long list for the five-person Canadian jury, which this year included Winnipeg author and professor Jenny Heijun Wills.

Abdurraqib is the author of four books — A Little Devil in America: In Praise of Black Performance, They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us, Go Ahead in the Rain and his most recent, the National Book Critics Circle Award winner (for criticism) There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension.

Buy on mcnallyrobinson.com

● ● ●

An online festival geared at highlighting the work of Canadian writers kicks off today, with a number of Manitoba authors taking part in the virtual book fair.

Canada Fiction Fest was created by Ottawa fantasy author N.P. Thompson to highlight Canadian authors, and runs from June 21 to July 4 at fictionfest.ca.

The website includes featured author biographies, photos, a list of free daily online workshops and chats and more, including links to buy participating authors’ books.

Participating Manitoba authors include Margaret Sweatman, David Jón Fuller, Jason Pchajek, JP Bird, Scarlett Kol and others.

● ● ●

The John Howard Society’s Get the Story Out campaign wraps up tomorrow, with the organization hoping to raise $2,000 to support the program.

Get the Story Out allows incarcerated fathers to connect with their children — the society provides children’s books to prisoners, who read them aloud and are recorded. The recording is then transferred to CD and sent gift-wrapped to the children by mail.

Purchase a $25 Father’s Day card at McNally Robinson Booksellers by end of day tomorrow, and the proceeds will go towards the program. The cards can also be purchased online at wfp.to/iMa.

● ● ●

Winnipeg author Cale Plett has been named artist in residence for the Riding Mountain Artists’ Residency, a program offered in partnership with the Manitoba Arts Council, Wasagaming Community Arts and Riding Mountain National Park.

Plett’s work includes 2025’s queer young-adult romance novel Wavelength and this year’s YA horror novel The Saw Mouth. Plett will be working on their next queer YA horror novel during the residency — for an interview with the author, see wfp.to/iMR.

winnipegfreepress.com/bensigurdson