David Homel

David Homel
Born1952 (age 72–73)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
OccupationWriter, translator
LanguageEnglish, French
NationalityAmerican, Canadian
Period1980s-present
GenreFiction, memoir
SpouseMarie-Louise Gay

David Homel (born 1952) is an American-Canadian writer and literary translator.[1] He is most noted as a two-time winner of the Governor General's Award for French to English translation, winning the award at the 1995 Governor General's Awards for Why Must a Black Writer Write About Sex?, his translation of Dany Laferrière's Cette grenade dans la main du jeune nègre est-elle une arme ou un fruit?,[2] and alongside Fred A. Reed at the 2001 Governor General's Awards for Fairy Ring, their translation of Martine Desjardins' Le Cercle de Clara.[3]

Originally from Chicago, Illinois,[4] Homel moved to Canada in 1975, first taking a master's at the University of Toronto before settling in Montreal in 1980.[5] He is married to children's writer Marie-Louise Gay, with whom he has cowritten several children's works.[5]

His debut novel Electrical Storms, published in 1988, was shortlisted for the SmithBooks/Books in Canada First Novel Award in 1989.[6] He is also a two-time winner of the Paragraphe Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction at the Quebec Writers' Federation Awards, winning in 2003 for The Speaking Cure[7] and in 2019 for The Teardown.[8]

He has been nominated for the Governor General's Award for translation on eight other occasions, for his translations of Laferrière's How to Make Love to a Negro Without Getting Tired (Comment faire l'amour avec un nègre sans se fatiguer) in 1988, An Aroma of Coffee (L'Odeur du café) in 1994 and A Drifting Year (Chronique de la dérive douce) in 1997, Yves Beauchemin's The Second Fiddle (Le Second violon) in 1998,[9] Philippe Poloni's Olivo Oliva in 1999, Monique Proulx's The Heart Is an Involuntary Muscle (Le Cœur est un muscle involontaire) in 2003 and Wildlives (Champagne) in 2009, and Desjardins' All That Glitters (L'Élu du hasard) in 2005.

Works

Fiction

  • Electrical Storms - 1988[10]
  • Rat Palms - 1992[11]
  • Sonya & Jack - 1995[12]
  • Get on Top - 1999[13]
  • The Speaking Cure - 2003[14]
  • Midway - 2010[15]
  • The Fledglings - 2014[16]
  • The Teardown - 2019[17]
  • A House Without Spirits - 2022[18]

Children's, with Marie-Louise Gay

  • Travels With My Family - 2006
  • On the Road Again! - 2008
  • Summer in the City - 2012
  • The Traveling Circus - 2015
  • Travels in Cuba - 2021

Non-fiction

  • Mapping Literature: The Art and Politics of Literary Translation - 1988
  • Le monde est un document, with photos by John Max - 2002[19]
  • Lunging Into the Underbrush: A Life Lived Backwards - 2021[1]

Translation

  • Talking It Out: The October Crisis from Inside - 1987 (Francis Simard, Pour en finir avec Octobre)
  • How to Make Love to a Negro - 1988 (Dany Laferrière, Comment faire l'amour avec un nègre sans se fatiguer)
  • The Invisible Empire - 1990 (Denis Côté, L'invisible puissance)
  • An Aroma of Coffee - 1993 (Dany Laferrière, L'odeur du café)
  • Why Must a Black Writer Write About Sex - 1995 (Dany Laferrière, Cette grenade dans la main du jeune nègre est-elle une arme ou un fruit?)
  • Sandman Blues - 1996 (Stéphane Bourguignon, L'avaleur de sable)
  • A Drifting Year - 1997 (Dany Laferrière, Chronique de la dérive douce)
  • The Second Fiddle - 1998 (Yves Beauchemin, Le second violon)
  • Olivo Oliva - 1999 (Philippe Poloni)
  • Fairy Rings - 2001 (Martine Desjardins, Le cercle de Clara), with Fred A. Reed
  • The Heart Is an Involuntary Muscle - 2003 (Monique Proulx,Le cœur est un muscle involontaire), with Fred A. Reed
  • All That Glitters - 2005 (Martine Desjardins, L'élu du hasard), with Fred A. Reed
  • The Baldwins - 2006 (Serge Lamothe, Les Baldwin), with Fred A. Reed

References

  1. ^ a b Ian McGillis, "Montreal's David Homel counsels self-forgiveness in new memoir". Montreal Gazette, April 23, 2021.
  2. ^ Val Ross, "G-G winners a surprise: Albertan short-story writer and francophone playwright pick up prizes". The Globe and Mail, November 15, 1995.
  3. ^ Jenny Jackson, "Nothing lost in the translation: Homel and Reed say it's poetic justice that they were honoured for translating Fairy Ring". Ottawa Citizen, November 15, 2001.
  4. ^ Victor Dabby, "Quebec translator bases novel on Chicago homicide". Ottawa Citizen, January 28, 1989.
  5. ^ a b Janice Kennedy, "A Novel Love; Two succesful [sic] writers live happily ever after - together". Montreal Gazette, November 7, 1988.
  6. ^ "Three double nominees for major book awards". Toronto Star, February 28, 1989.
  7. ^ Pat Donnelly, "Homel's novel wins at writers' gala". Montreal Gazette, November 27, 2003.
  8. ^ Brendan Kelly, "Quebec Writers' Federation awards reflect booming local literary scene; Homel's The Teardown, Nixon's nîtisânak among work recognized at annual event". Montreal Gazette, November 6, 2019.
  9. ^ "Montrealers deluge list of nominees". Montreal Gazette, October 21, 1998.
  10. ^ "Electrical Storms heralds new arrival". Calgary Herald, February 11, 1989.
  11. ^ Candace Fertile, "Rat Palms sticks in the mind". Calgary Herald, April 18, 1992.
  12. ^ Michael Mirolla, "Homel can't be faulted for his ambition". Halifax Daily News, October 1, 1995.
  13. ^ Brett Josef Grubisic, "Comedy trumps philosophy Marriage of theology and erotics is overwhelmed by the exuberant, manic frame of David Homel's novel". The Globe and Mail, April 17, 1999.
  14. ^ Trevor Carolan, "The Speaking Cure seeks answers". Sherbrooke Record, October 24, 2003.
  15. ^ Harold Heft, "Tale of one man's mid-life crisis lacks energy". Edmonton Journal, December 26, 2010.
  16. ^ Ian McGillis, "David Homel's attachment theory; The Fledglings explores bonds between girlfriends, sons and mothers, and writers and their material". Montreal Gazette, May 24, 2014.
  17. ^ Ian McGillis, "Author's Montreal is a beloved neighbourhood of old haunts, great food". Montreal Gazette, March 15, 2019.
  18. ^ Ian McGillis, "Q&A: One of Montreal's most prolific writers conjures spirits, including Leonard Cohen". Montreal Gazette, October 27, 2022.
  19. ^ Homel, David; Max, John (2002). Le monde est un document. Québec City: J'ai VU. ISBN 9782922763041. OCLC 747175727.