Souvankham Thammavongsa

Last updated

Souvankham Thammavongsa
Born1978
Nong Khai, Thailand
Occupationwriter
Nationality Canadian
Period2000s–present
Notable worksSmall Arguments, Found, Light, How to Pronounce Knife , Slingshot

Souvankham Thammavongsa is a Laotian Canadian poet and short story writer. In 2019, she won an O. Henry Award for her short story, "Slingshot", which was published in Harper's Magazine , [1] and in 2020 her short story collection How to Pronounce Knife won the Giller Prize. [2]

Contents

Life

Thammavongsa was born in the Lao refugee camp in Nong Khai, Thailand in 1978. [3] She and her parents were sponsored by a family in Canada when she was one year old. [4] She was raised and educated in Toronto, Ontario. [5]

She has never taken an MFA course, and says that she has learned to write by reading. Some of her favorite authors are Alice Munro, Carson McCullers, Flannery O’Connor, and Tennessee Williams. [6]

Her first book, Small Arguments, won a ReLit Award in 2004. [7] Her second book, Found, was made into a short film by Paramita Nath. [8] Her third book, Light, won the Trillium Book Award for Poetry in 2014. [9] Her short story "How to Pronounce Knife" was shortlisted for the 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize out of 4,000 entries. [10] In 2016, two of her stories, "Mani Pedi" and "Paris," were longlisted for the Journey Prize. [11]

Her first short story collection, How to Pronounce Knife , was published in 2020. [12] Australian literary critic Kerryn Goldsworthy wrote of the stories that "their language is economical but they are emotional timebombs." [13] In the book, she draws upon her childhood as the daughter of Laotian immigrants to tell fourteen stories, each an exploration of foreignness and belonging. [14] The book was shortlisted for the Giller Prize, [15] and won the award on November 9, 2020. In 2021, the book was awarded the $20,000 (Canadian) Trillium Book Award, [16] and was a shortlisted finalist for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award in 2021. [17]

Thammavongsa was a judge for the 2021 Griffin Poetry Prize. [18] She was guest editor for 2021 Best Canadian Poetry (Biblioasis) and in 2024 was the judge for the inaugural Montreal Fiction Prize. [19] [20]

Bibliography

Poetry

Collections

Short fiction

Stories [lower-alpha 2]
TitleYearFirst publishedReprinted/collectedNotes
Good-looking2021Thammavongsa, Souvankham (March 1, 2021). "Good-looking". The New Yorker. 97 (2): 54–56.

———————

Bibliography notes
  1. ↑ Briefly mentioned at "20 works of Canadian poetry to check out in spring 2019". CBC Books, January 25, 2019.
  2. ↑ Short stories unless otherwise noted.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giller Prize</span> Canadian literary award

The Giller Prize is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English the previous year, after an annual juried competition between publishers who submit entries. The prize was established in 1994 by Toronto businessman Jack Rabinovitch in honour of his late wife Doris Giller, a former literary editor at the Toronto Star, and is awarded in November of each year along with a cash reward with the winner being presented by the previous year's winning author.

Barry Edward Dempster is a Canadian poet, novelist, and editor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Heighton</span> Canadian writer (1961–2022)

Steven Heighton was a Canadian fiction writer, poet, and singer-songwriter. He is the author of eighteen books, including three short story collections, four novels, and seven poetry collections. His last work was Selected Poems 1983-2020 and an album, The Devil's Share.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Bergen</span> Canadian writer

David Bergen is a Canadian novelist. He has published eleven novels and two collections of short stories since 1993 and is currently based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. His 2005 novel The Time in Between won the Scotiabank Giller Prize and he was a finalist again in 2010 and 2020, making the long list in 2008.

Karen Solie is a Canadian poet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Hall (poet)</span> Canadian poet (born 1953)

Phil Hall is a Canadian poet.

NOON is a literary annual founded in 2000 by American author Diane Williams. NOON Inc. launched its 24th edition in March 2023. NOON is archived at The Lilly Library along with the personal literary archive of founding editor Diane Williams. The Lilly is the principal rare books, manuscripts, and special collections repository of Indiana University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pasha Malla</span> Canadian author

Pasha Malla is a Canadian author.

Pedlar Press is an independent Canadian book publisher based in St. John's NL, specializing in contemporary works of poetry, prose and graphic novels, works that extend the tradition of literary experimentation.

Beth Goobie is a Canadian poet and fiction writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Cayley</span> Canadian writer and theatre director

Kate Cayley is a Canadian writer and theatre director. She was the artistic director of Stranger Theatre and was playwright-in-residence at Toronto's Tarragon Theatre from 2009 to 2017.

Kevin Hardcastle is a Canadian fiction writer, whose debut short story collection Debris won the Trillium Book Award in 2016 and the ReLit Award for Short Fiction in 2017. The collection, published by Biblioasis in 2015, was also shortlisted for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award and the Kobo Emerging Writer Prize, and was named a best book of the year by Quill and Quire.

Biblioasis is a Canadian independent bookstore and publishing company, based in Windsor, Ontario.

Susan Holbrook is a Canadian poet, whose collection Throaty Wipes was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award for English-language poetry at the 2016 Governor General's Awards.

Canisia Lubrin is a writer, critic, professor, poet and editor. Originally from St. Lucia, Lubrin now lives in Whitby, Ontario, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zalika Reid-Benta</span> Canadian writer

Zalika Reid-Benta is a Canadian author. Her debut novel River Mumma was a finalist for the 2024 Trillium Book Award and received starred reviews from publications such as Publishers Weekly. It has been listed as one of the best fiction books of 2023 on numerous platforms, including CBC Books. The novel is a "magical realist story" inspired by Jamaican folklore. The main character, Alicia Gale, is a young Black woman having a quarter-life crisis, while adventuring through the streets of Toronto, Ontario.

<i>How to Pronounce Knife</i> 2020 short story collection by Souvankham Thammavongsa

How to Pronounce Knife is a short story collection by Souvankham Thammavongsa, published in 2020 by McClelland & Stewart. The stories in the collection centre principally on the experiences of Laotian Canadian immigrant families, sometimes from the perspective of children observing the world of adults.

The following is a list of winners and nominees in English-language categories for the Trillium Book Award, a Canadian literary award presented by Ontario Creates to honour books published by writers resident in the province of Ontario. Separate awards have been presented for French-language literature since 1994; for the winners and nominees in French-language categories, see Trillium Book Award, French.

The following is a list of winners and nominees in French-language categories for the Trillium Book Award, a Canadian literary award presented by Ontario Creates to honour books published by writers resident in the province of Ontario. Separate awards have been presented for English-language literature since 1994; for the winners and nominees in English-language categories, see Trillium Book Award, English.

Bardia Sinaee is an Iranian Canadian poet and editor, whose debut collection Intruder was the winner of the Trillium Book Award for English Poetry in 2022.

References

  1. ↑ van Koeverden, Jane (May 17, 2019). "Canadians Alexander MacLeod, Souvankham Thammavongsa & n O. Henry Prize". CBC News. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  2. ↑ Bresge, Adina. "Souvankham Thammavongsa wins Giller Prize for 'How to Pronounce Knife'". Hamilton Spectator . Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Souvankham Thammavongsa". Poetry In Voice. Canada Council for the Arts. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Into the Field: Souvankham Thammavongsa". Jacket2. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Souvankham Thammavongsa". Versefest. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  6. ↑ "Poet Souvankham Thammavongsa shifts gears with a sharp and steely new collection of short stories". Quill and Quire. March 5, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Thammavongsa Souvankham". Poets.ca. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Found: The Film (Trailer)" . Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Trillium Book Award Winners" . Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  10. ↑ "2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize Shortlist". Commonwealth Writers. March 31, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Journey Prize longlists Souvankham Thammavongsa twice." Lao American Review. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  12. ↑ "47 works of Canadian fiction to watch for in spring 2020". CBC Books, February 5, 2020.
  13. ↑ Goldsworthy, Kerryn (August 21, 2020). "Fiction reviews: How to Pronounce Knife and three other titles". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  14. ↑ Channing, Cornelia (April 23, 2020). "Laughter as a Shield: An Interview with Souvankham Thammavongsa". The Paris Review. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  15. ↑ "3 novels, 2 short story collections shortlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize". CBC Books, October 5, 2020.
  16. ↑ "Souvankham Thammavongsa wins $20K Trillium Book Award for How to Pronounce Knife". CBC Books. June 16, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  17. ↑ Vicky Qiao, "Jack Wang wins $10K Danuta Gleed Literary Award for best first short story collection for We Two Alone". CBC Books, May 28, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Griffin Poetry Prize - 2021 Judges", Griffin Poetry Prize
  19. ↑ "Biblioasis - Best Canadian Poetry 2021", Biblioasis Books
  20. ↑ "Toronto-based writer Sabrina Fielding named winner of inaugural Montreal Fiction Prize", CBC Books , July 19, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.