(Halifax, NS)
The winner of the 2023 Atlantic Publishers Marketing Association’s Best Atlantic-Published Book Award, sponsored by Friesens Corporation, is Goose Lane Editions with The Beaverbrook Art Gallery Wabanaki Modern / Wabanaki Kiskukewey / Wabanaki Moderne by Emma Hassencahl-Perley & John Leroux
Friesens Corporation sponsors the APMA Best Atlantic-Published Book Award with a cash prize of $3,000 awarded to the publisher and $1,000 to the author of the winning book. The prize is presented annually at the Atlantic Book Awards Gala to an Atlantic Canadian publisher whose book best exemplifies excellence in publishing. The jury considers content and editing, design and production, marketing and sales, and the book’s cultural, social, and literary impact. The award recognizes the achievements of the publisher and the author, as well all of the elements involved in getting the book into the hands of readers.
This year’s event was presented at Paul O’Regan Hall (Halifax Central Library), where the winners of the Atlantic Book Awards were announced at an in-person event hosted by Lindsay Ruck, with a livestream to reach book lovers who preferred to watch the ceremony online.
Friesens’ Ron Such presented the award in person. Here’s what the jury had to say about Wabanaki Modern:
How exciting it is to commend Wabanaki Modern, a trilingual celebration of the Mi’kmaw art co-operative, inspired by traditional Wabanaki stories, for this year’s APMA Best-Published Book Award. The story of how the artists came together at a critical time in Wabanaki art history is accompanied by flowing, descriptive text in English, French and Mi’kmaw, offering stunning visuals and detailed analysis of the scope, courage, tenacity and creative genius of Atlantic Canada’s Indigenous artists, laying the groundwork for the vibrant Wabanaki artists who continue to flourish today. This gorgeous book accompanies a major exhibition and documentary film of the same name, showcasing the eclectic range of modern Wabanaki art design, featured on silkscreened notecards, jewelry, tapestries, beautiful prints and English porcelain while weaving together the stories of the artists who were instrumental in establishing the modern Indigenous art movement. The production values of this timely retrospective truly impressed the jury, who all agreed it was beautiful, of historic and cultural significance and a crucial contribution to the Canadian identity.
Wabanaki Modern was chosen as the winner from a shortlist of 3 books:
- Goose Lane Editions with the Beaverbrook Art Gallery: Wabanaki Modern/Wabanaki Kiskukewey/Wabanaki Moderne by Emma Hassencahl-Perley & John Leroux
- Flanker Press: Operation Masonic by Helen C. Escott
- Boulder Books: Food, Culture, Place: Stories, Traditions, and Recipes of Newfoundland by Lori McCarthy and Marsha Tulk
Please see the Atlantic Book Awards press release for the full list of the winners announced at the Atlantic Book Awards Gala.
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For more information:
Karen Cole (APMA) – karencole@atlanticpublishers.ca
Website:
