Gibson gets the Woodcock
June 13th, 2024
International bestseller, William Gibson (at right) will be awarded the 2024 George Woodcock Lifetime Achievement Award for an outstanding literary career in British Columbia at the Vancouver Public Library, central branch, on June 20 at 7 pm.
Credited with coining the word “cyberspace,” Gibson has been described as the “noir prophet” of the speculative fiction sub-genre, cyberpunk, and his work influences more than the literary world, reaching into design, film, music and technology. BC BookWorld has described his work as “world-ranging fiction” that is “an interplay between dread and ecstasy, with riffs about technology as if it is a new drug.”
The author of 13 novels including Neuromancer (Ace, 1984), and Johnny Mnemonic (Ace, 1995), he has won many science fiction awards and one of his short stories became the basis for the 1995 movie Johnny Mnemonic starring Keanu Reeves; another was used as the springboard for the 1999 movie New Rose Hotel starring Christopher Walken, Willem Dafoe, and Asia Argento. Gibson’s most recent novel is Agency (Penguin, 2020).
Gibson has also written numerous scripts for films and TV series. He also regularly contributes articles on social and political issues to The New York Times, Wired, Rolling Stone and The Guardian.
EVENT DETAILS:
PLACE: Alice MacKay Room, VPL Central, 350 West Georgia Street, Vancouver
DATE & TIME: June 20, 7 PM – 8 PM
FREE but please register at this link (so we can provide the right seating): VPL event listing
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Helen Knott
Also at this event, the co-winners of the George Ryga Award for social awareness in literature, Helen Knott for Becoming a Matriarch (Knopf $32.00) and Wayne McCrory for The Wild Horses of the Chilcotin (Harbour $39.95) will be celebrated. Wayne McCrory will be in attendance.
Knott’s Becoming a Matriarch navigates grief, love and legacy after experiencing the loss of her mother and grandmother within a short span of six months, Knott finds herself grappling with the complexities of matriarchy, martyrdom and codependency. She comes to the realization that she must not only bid farewell to the women who raised her but also to the version of herself she once believed in. Interwoven throughout the narrative are themes of finding sobriety amidst sorrow and the transition of dreams across generations. This book offers poetic reflections, sprinkled with sass, humor and heartfelt moments, guiding readers across the landscapes of Dane Zaa territory in Northeastern BC, the streets of Antigua, Guatemala and into the essence of true matriarchy.
Wayne McCrory
The wild horses of the Chilcotin region evoke romanticism and beauty, yet they remain a source of controversy. Government policies have viewed them as intruders, competing with native species and domestic cattle for range land. Consequently, wild horses have faced culls (a nice word for killing them) and lack official protection.
In his book, wildlife biologist Wayne McCrory leverages two decades of research to advocate for the recognition of these magnificent creatures, known as “qiyus” in traditional Tŝilhqot’in culture, as integral to the region’s balanced prey-predator ecosystem. McCrory delves into the genetic history of the Chilcotin wild horses and their significance to the Tŝilhqot’in people, juxtaposing Indigenous conservation efforts with movements aimed at culling them.
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We gratefully acknowledge the sponsorship of Yosef Wosk, the Vancouver Public Library and Pacific BookWorld News Society.
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