Mercy among the Children
2000 novel by David Adams Richards
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| Author | David Adams Richards |
|---|---|
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Published | 2000 (Doubleday Canada) |
| Media type | |
Mercy among the Children is a novel by David Adams Richards, published by Doubleday Canada in 2000. Sarah Slean championed the novel to compete in Canada Reads in 2009.[1]
Synopsis
Set in the rural Miramichi Valley of New Brunswick, the novel depicts the family of Sydney Henderson, a man who vowed in childhood never to express himself in anger or violence after accidentally pushing a playmate off the roof of a building. As a result of his vow, residents of the community exploit Henderson, framing him for a crime and tormenting his children. The novel closely explores the effect of this dynamic on one particular son, Lyle, who is drawn into violence as he attempts to defend his family. The characters are limited by many constraints such as class, poverty, lack of education, family background and reputation and the biases that come along with these factors.
Awards
The book was a co-winner of the Giller Prize in 2000, with Michael Ondaatje's novel Anil's Ghost. This was the only tie in the history of the award.
References
- ^ Merritt, Stephanie (2001-09-09). "So you thought Hardy was full of misery..." The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 2023-12-01.
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Recipients of the Giller Prize
- M. G. Vassanji, The Book of Secrets (1994)
- Rohinton Mistry, A Fine Balance (1995)
- Margaret Atwood, Alias Grace (1996)
- Mordecai Richler, Barney's Version (1997)
- Alice Munro, The Love of a Good Woman (1998)
- Bonnie Burnard, A Good House (1999)
- Michael Ondaatje, Anil's Ghost / David Adams Richards, Mercy among the Children (2000)
- Richard B. Wright, Clara Callan (2001)
- Austin Clarke, The Polished Hoe (2002)
- M. G. Vassanji, The In-Between World of Vikram Lall (2003)
- Alice Munro, Runaway (2004)
- David Bergen, The Time in Between (2005)
- Vincent Lam, Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures (2006)
- Elizabeth Hay, Late Nights on Air (2007)
- Joseph Boyden, Through Black Spruce (2008)
- Linden MacIntyre, The Bishop's Man (2009)
- Johanna Skibsrud, The Sentimentalists (2010)
- Esi Edugyan, Half-Blood Blues (2011)
- Will Ferguson, 419 (2012)
- Lynn Coady, Hellgoing (2013)
- Sean Michaels, Us Conductors (2014)
- André Alexis, Fifteen Dogs (2015)
- Madeleine Thien, Do Not Say We Have Nothing (2016)
- Michael Redhill, Bellevue Square (2017)
- Esi Edugyan, Washington Black (2018)
- Ian Williams, Reproduction (2019)
- Souvankham Thammavongsa, How to Pronounce Knife (2020)
- Omar El Akkad, What Strange Paradise (2021)
- Suzette Mayr, The Sleeping Car Porter (2022)
- Sarah Bernstein, Study for Obedience (2023)
 | This article about a 2000s novel is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page. |
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 | This article about a Canadian novel is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page. |
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