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Michelle Good

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Michelle Good
OccupationAuthor, poet, lawyer
NationalityCree, Canadian
Alma materUniversity of British Columbia
GenreFiction, Poetry, Essay
Notable worksFive Little Indians, Defying Gravity, "Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada"
Notable awardsHarperCollins/UBC Best New Fiction Prize, 2020
Website
www.michellegood.ca

Michelle Good is a Cree writer, poet, and lawyer from Canada, most noted for her debut novel Five Little Indians.[1] She is a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan.[2] Good has an MFA and a law degree from the University of British Columbia and, as a lawyer, advocated for residential-school survivors.[3][4]

Early life and education

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Good is a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation.[5][6] She was impacted by the 60s scoop and spent time in the foster care system.[7] Her great-grandmother participated in the 1885 uprising at Frog Lake and her Great Grandmother's uncle was Big Bear.[5] Good graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative writing in 2014.[6] The first draft of her debut novel, Five Little Indians, was her graduate thesis project.[6] She began to practice law in her 40's, sharing the histories of residential schools in courtrooms. [8] Good received an Honorary Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, from Simon Fraser University on October 7, 2022.[9][10]

Works

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Five Little Indians

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Main article: Five Little Indians (novel)

Five Little Indians is a story about five British Columbia residential-school survivors.[11] Although the novel itself is fiction, some of the episodes were based on real experiences of her mother and grandmother, who were both survivors of Canada's residential school system.[1] Published in 2020, the novel was longlisted for the Giller Prize[12] and shortlisted for the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.[13] Now listed it as one of the top 10 novels of 2020.[14]

In 2020, the book won the HarperCollins/UBC Best New Fiction Prize.[15] Then, in 2021, the book won the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction at the 2020 Governor General's Awards,[16] the Amazon.ca First Novel Award,[17] the Kobo Emerging Writer Prize,[18] and the Canada Reads 2022.[9] Also in 2021, the book will be adapted as a limited television series by producer Martin Katz.[19][20]

Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada

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Truth Telling is the second book written by Good. it is a collection of essays on historical and modern experiences of indigenous in Canada.  It covers wide variety of topics from life of indigenous people to modern social institution in Canada. Published on May 30, 2023, and finalist for the Balsillie Prize for Public Policy.[21]

Poetry

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  • Defying Gravity published in The Best Canadian Poetry 2016. Published on Oct 1, 2016 by Tightrope Books. Guest editor Helen Humphreys, editor Molly Peacock, and series editor Anita Lahy.[22][23]
  • The Best of the Best Canadian Poetry, A Tenth Anniversary Edition.[24] Published on November 1, 2017 by Tightrope Books. Editors Anita Lahey and Molly Peacock.[25]

Essays

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  • A Tradition Of Violence published in Keetsahnak: Our Missing and Murdered Indigenous Sisters. Published in 2018 by University of Alberta Press. Editors Kim Anderson, Maria Campbell, and Christi Belcourt.[26][23]
  • Best Canadian Essay 2023. Published in December 13, 2022 by Bilblioasis. Editor Mireille Silcoff.[23][27]

Journal

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  • Gatherings Volume VII: The En'owkin Journal of First North American Peoples. Published in 1996 by Theytus Books. Editors Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm and Jeannette Armstrong[23]

Awards and Nominations

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The Governor General's Literary Award 2021

The Writers Trust Fiction Prize

The HarperCollind UBC Best New Fiction Prize

The Ethel Wilson Prize

Canada Reads 2022

"The Evergreen Award" issued by Forest of Reading program for Five Little Indians in 2021[9]

"The City of Vancouver Book of the Year Award" issued for Five Little Indians in 2021[9]

"The Jim Deva Prize for Writing that Provokes", issued by BC and Yukon Book Prizes for Five Little Indians in 2021[9][28]

References

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  1. ^ a b Angelica Haggert, "'The story I was intended to write': Michelle Good on forthcoming novel 'Five Little Indians'". Canadian Geographic, February 20, 2020.
  2. ^ "Michelle Good's Five Little Indians is a fictional look at the real Canadian legacy of residential schools". The Next Chapter, May 8, 2020.
  3. ^ "Five Little Indians follows young lives forced into residential school". vancouversun. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  4. ^ "CP24 | Entertainment News - Toronto arts & entertainment | Celeb Gossip". www.cp24.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  5. ^ a b Laskaris, Adam (1 June 2021). "Kamloops-area author wins prestigious awards for debut novel". Kamloops This Week. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Drudi, Cassandra (1 June 2021). "GG Winners Circle: Michelle Good (English-language fiction)". Quill and Quire. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  7. ^ Van Koeverden, Jane (March 14, 2022). "Michelle Good on her novel Five Little Indians, and the question that guides her writing". Retrieved March 27, 2022.
  8. ^ Van Koeverden, Jane (March 14, 2022). "Michelle Good on her novel Five Little Indians, and the question that guides her writing". Retrieved March 27, 2022.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Michelle Good - Biography". Michelle Good the Writer. Retrieved 2023-11-19.
  10. ^ "SFU 2022 Honorary Degree Recipients". www.sfu.ca. Retrieved 2023-11-19.
  11. ^ "Michelle Good's "Five Little Indians" a fictional exploration of life after residential school". thestar.com. 2020-04-16. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  12. ^ Deborah Dundas, "Thomas King, Emma Donoghue make the 2020 Giller Longlist in a year marked by firsts". toronto Star, September 8, 2020.
  13. ^ "Thomas King, Gil Adamson among finalists for $50K Writers' Trust Fiction Prize". Toronto Star, October 6, 2020.
  14. ^ Cole, Susan G. (2020-11-30). "The 10 best books of 2020". NOW Magazine. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  15. ^ "Success Story with Michelle Good". 14 September 2020.
  16. ^ "Michelle Good says celebrating fiction win feels 'petty and selfish' after residential school discovery". CTV News, June 1, 2021.
  17. ^ Vicky Qiao, "Five Little Indians by Michelle Good wins $60K Amazon First Novel Award". CBC Books, May 28, 2021.
  18. ^ Deborah Dundas, "Michelle Good wins Kobo Emerging Writer fiction prize — making it three wins for the three noms she got on that big day in May". Toronto Star, June 22, 2021.
  19. ^ Vicky, Qiao (June 2001). "Michelle Good's Five Little Indians to be adapted into limited TV series".
  20. ^ Vlessing, Etan (2021-06-08). "David Cronenberg Producer Martin Katz to Adapt 'Five Little Indians' Indigenous Trauma Novel (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-11-19.
  21. ^ "Truth Telling - Michelle Good - Hardcover". HarperCollins Canada. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  22. ^ Humphreys, Helen (2016). The Best Canadian Poetry in English 2016. Tightrope Books. ISBN 978-1988040103.
  23. ^ a b c d "Michelle Good - Published Works". Michelle Good the Writer. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  24. ^ Brady, Sean. "Surviving after leaving the residential schools". Kamloops This Week. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  25. ^ Lahey, Anita; Peacock, Molly (2017). The Best of the Best Canadian Poetry in English: The Tenth Anniversary Edition. Tightrope Books. ISBN 978-1988040349.
  26. ^ "Pacific Rim Review of Books". www.prrb.ca. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  27. ^ "Best Canadian Essays 2023". Biblioasis. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  28. ^ "Winners & Finalists". BC and Yukon Book Prizes. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
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