By Lena Coakley

The Canada Council for the Arts announced the 68 finalists for the 2011 Governor General’s Literary Awards yesterday. The GGs, Canada’s national book awards, celebrate the excellence of Canadian writers, illustrators and translators.

Children’s Literature — Text

A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk by Jan L. Coates (Red Deer)

No Ordinary Day by Deborah Ellis (Groundwood/House of Anansi)

From Then to Now: A Short History of the World by Christopher Moore (Tundra)

This Dark Endeavour by Kenneth Oppel (HarperCollins Canada)

Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones (Candlewick)

Children’s Literature — Illustration

Migrant, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault, text by Maxine Trottier (Groundwood/House of Anansi)

Fishing with Gubby, illustrated by Kim La Fave, text by Gary Kent (Harbour)

Red Wagon, written and illustrated by Renata Liwska (Philomel)

Along a Long Road, written and illustrated by Frank Viva (HarperCollins)

Ten Birds, written and illustrated by Cybèle Young (Kids Can)

See more information and a complete list of the winners.

Cynsational Notes

Lena Coakley was born in Milford, Connecticut and grew up on Long Island. In high school, creative writing was the only class she ever failed (nothing was ever good enough to hand in!), but, undeterred, she went on to study writing at Sarah Lawrence College.

She got interested in young adult literature when she moved to Toronto, Canada, and began working for CANSCAIP, the Canadian Society of Children’s Authors, Illustrators and Performers, where she eventually became the Administrative Director.

She is now a full-time writer living in Toronto. Witchlanders is her debut novel. Lena contributes news and interviews from the children’s-YA creative, literature and publishing community in Canada.