The Last Crossing
Encyclopedia
The Last Crossing is a novel
by Canadian
writer Guy Vanderhaeghe
. It was first published in 2002 by McClelland and Stewart
.
A rethinking of the genre
of the "western
", The Last Crossing is a tale of interwoven lives and stories taking place in the last half of the 19th century, travelling from the United States
to England
and to Saskatchewan
in the Canadian west.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
writer Guy Vanderhaeghe
Guy Vanderhaeghe
Guy Clarence Vanderhaeghe, OC, SOM is a Canadian novelist and short story writer, best known for his two Western novels, The Englishman's Boy and The Last Crossing, set in the 19th century American and Canadian West...
. It was first published in 2002 by McClelland and Stewart
McClelland and Stewart
McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is partially owned by Random House of Canada, now a subsidiary of Bertelsmann....
.
A rethinking of the genre
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
of the "western
Western fiction
Western fiction is a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier and typically set from the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. Well-known writers of Western fiction include Zane Grey from the early 1900s and Louis L'Amour from the mid 20th century...
", The Last Crossing is a tale of interwoven lives and stories taking place in the last half of the 19th century, travelling from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and to Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
in the Canadian west.
Awards and nominations
- The Last Crossing was one of the selected books in the 2004 edition of Canada ReadsCanada ReadsCanada Reads is an annual "battle of the books" competition organized and broadcast by Canada's public broadcaster, the CBC.-Overview:During Canada Reads, five personalities champion five different books, each champion extolling the merits of one of the titles. The debate is broadcast over a series...
, championed by musicianMusicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
Jim CuddyJim CuddyJim Cuddy is a Canadian singer-songwriter primarily associated with the band Blue Rodeo. He has also recorded three solo albums with the Jim Cuddy Band, which features musicians Bazil Donovan, Colin Cripps, Joel Anderson, Anne Lindsay and Gavin Brown...
. The Last Crossing eventually won the competition. - Nominated, IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (2004)