CAA Literary Awards Banquet

Let me start by saying that authors clean up nicely. Even the Irish like Patrick Taylor looked almost civilized. Rhonda Lee Stephenson, Awards Committee Chair, looked simply ravishing. Anthony Dalton, CAA President and intrepid marine adventurer was probably concealing a .pdf (personal flotation device) under his clothing but outwardly looked almost Bay Street.

Julie and Colin Angus, National Geographic's 2007 Adventurers of the Year award winners and authors of their most recent book Rowed Trip, gave a truly d(h)aunting and surprisingly amusing account of their adventures bicycling Siberian blizzards, rowboating Atlantic Hurricanes and interpreting Bulgarian customs. After all that they even navigated publishers and started a family. Their youthful energy was exhausting.

The banquet food and service at the Harbour Towers was terrific. I do apologize to whoever ate my salmon. When the chicken came by first, I was famished so I just said that I'd ordered chicken. I really had no idea Laura chose salmon for us. I was feeling a bit fishy until I cleared that up. The chicken really was delicious.

R. L. Stephenson-Read presented the awards with flair:

The Bookland Press Emerging Writer Award went to British Columbian author, Rachelle Delaney for The Ship of Lost Souls, (HarperCollins Publishing).

The CAA Award for Poetry went to Newfoundland poet, Tom Dawe, for Where Genesis Begins,(Breakwater Books).

The Carol Bolt Award for Drama went to Manitoban playwright, Michael Nathanson, for Talk, (Playwrights Canada Press).

The Lela Common Award for Canadian History went to Ontarian Jonathan F. Vance for A History of Canadian Culture (Oxford University Press).

The Mosaid Technologies Award for Fiction went to Newfoundlander Michael Crummy, for Galore (Doubleday Canada).

Bernice Lever, a former award winner herself, presented the Allan Sangster Award, honouring long and meritorious CAA service, to British Columbian, Walter MacConville. Fellow poet, Sheila Martindale accepted the award for Walter who at 95 wasn't about to Colin Angus himself to some late night writer's banquet.

With that Jean Kay was called up by Anthony and R.L. so Margaret Hume could present her a bouquet of flowers with special thanks for all the amazing work and organization that she'd undertaken to make this a truly memorable conference that will be the 'buzz' for years to come.