Zoe Whittall (born February 16, 1976)[1] is a Canadian poet, novelist and TV writer.[2][3] She has published five novels and three poetry collections to date.
She works as a TV writer and previously worked as an arts reporter and in small press publishing. She lives in Toronto.[2]
Her first novel, Bottle Rocket Hearts, was named a Globe and Mail Best Book of the Year[2] and one of the top ten essential Canadian novels of the decade by CBC's Canada Reads.[4]
In 2010 she published a short novella for Orca Books' Rapid Reads series called The Middle Ground, a book for adults with low literacy skills.[9]
Her poetry books include The Best Ten Minutes of Your Life, The Emily Valentine Poems and Precordial Thump.[2] She edited the short fiction anthology Geeks, Misfits & Outlaws (McGilligan Books) in 2003.[10]
In 2013 Whittall created the poem 'Unequal to me',[11] a collection of book reviews illustrating gender bias, revealing sexism and misogyny, by swapping the authors' personal pronouns indicated by the critics.[12][13]
In 2016, her novel The Best Kind of People was published in Canada by House of Anansi and shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. In 2017, it was published in hardcover in the U.K. by Hodder & Stoughton, and in the United States by Ballantine Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. The novel is currently being adapted for feature film by director Sarah Polley. The Best Kind of People was named Indigo's #1 Book of 2016, and a best book of the year by Walrus Magazine,[14]The Globe & Mail, Toronto Life, and The National Post.[15][16][17] The year also saw Whittall awarded the K.M. Hunter Artist Award for literature, given to people who have demonstrated both talent and the potential for further development in their field.[18]
^"Zoe Whittall: Unequal To Me". Lemon Hound: Arts, Letters, Poetry, Prose, An Ever-Evolving Digital Site Since 2005. Lemon Hound. 26 March 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
