Stephen Henighan
Encyclopedia
Stephen Henighan is a Canadian novelist, short story writer, journalist and academic.
Arriving in Canada at the age of five, Henighan grew up in rural eastern Ontario
. He studied political science at Swarthmore College
in Pennsylvania
, where he won the Potter Short Story Prize in April 1981. From 1984 to 1992 he lived in Montreal
as a freelance writer and completed an M.A. at Concordia University. In 1996 he earned a doctorate in Spanish American literature at Wadham College, Oxford
. He also studied in Colombia
, Romania
and Germany. From 1996 to 1998 Henighan taught Latin American literature at Queen Mary & Westfield College
, University of London
. Since 1999 he has taught at the University of Guelph
, Ontario.
Henighan has published three novels. His short stories have been published in Canada, the U.S., Great Britain and, in translation, in Europe. Henighan's novels and stories feature immigrants, travellers and other displaced people caught between cultures. According to the journal Canadian Literature, Henighan is "a writer who looks hard at the complexities and rebarbative elements of the multicultural, globalized world we live in."
Henighan's journalism has appeared in The Times Literary Supplement
, The Walrus
, Geist
, The Globe and Mail
, Toronto Life
and the Montreal Gazette. He has been a finalist for the Governor General's Award
, among other prizes.
In 2006 Henighan set off a controversy when he attacked the Giller Prize. As an academic, he has published articles on Latin American literature
and Lusophone African fiction and a book on the Nobel Prize
- winning Guatemalan novelist Miguel Ángel Asturias
. Henighan has published translations from Spanish, Portuguese and Romanian, notably of the Angolan writer Ondjaki
, and the Romanian writer Mihail Sebastian
, and is general editor of a translation series run by Biblioasis, a literary publisher based near Windsor
, Ontario.
Arriving in Canada at the age of five, Henighan grew up in rural eastern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. He studied political science at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, where he won the Potter Short Story Prize in April 1981. From 1984 to 1992 he lived in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
as a freelance writer and completed an M.A. at Concordia University. In 1996 he earned a doctorate in Spanish American literature at Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, located at the southern end of Parks Road in central Oxford. It was founded by Nicholas and Dorothy Wadham, wealthy Somerset landowners, during the reign of King James I...
. He also studied in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Germany. From 1996 to 1998 Henighan taught Latin American literature at Queen Mary & Westfield College
Queen Mary, University of London
Queen Mary, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. Since 1999 he has taught at the University of Guelph
University of Guelph
The University of Guelph, also known as U of G, is a comprehensive public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College, the Macdonald Institute, and the Ontario Veterinary College...
, Ontario.
Henighan has published three novels. His short stories have been published in Canada, the U.S., Great Britain and, in translation, in Europe. Henighan's novels and stories feature immigrants, travellers and other displaced people caught between cultures. According to the journal Canadian Literature, Henighan is "a writer who looks hard at the complexities and rebarbative elements of the multicultural, globalized world we live in."
Henighan's journalism has appeared in The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...
, The Walrus
The Walrus
The Walrus is a Canadian general interest magazine which publishes long form journalism on Canadian and international affairs, along with fiction and poetry by Canadian writers. It launched in September 2003, as an attempt to create a Canadian equivalent to American magazines such as Harper's, The...
, Geist
Geist (magazine)
Geist is Canada's most widely read literary magazine. Geist is published four times a year in Vancouver since 1990. The magazine takes its name from the German word geist, meaning "mind" or "spirit."...
, The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
, Toronto Life
Toronto Life
Toronto Life is a monthly Canadian magazine about entertainment, politics and life in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Toronto Life also publishes a number of annual special interest guides about the city, including Home Decor, Stylebook, Eating & Drinking, Real Estate and Weddings. Established in 1966,...
and the Montreal Gazette. He has been a finalist for the Governor General's Award
Governor General's Award
The Governor General's Awards are a collection of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, marking distinction in a number of academic, artistic and social fields. The first was conceived in 1937 by Lord Tweedsmuir, a prolific author of fiction and non-fiction who created the Governor...
, among other prizes.
In 2006 Henighan set off a controversy when he attacked the Giller Prize. As an academic, he has published articles on Latin American literature
Latin American literature
Latin American literature consists of the oral and written literature of Latin America in several languages, particularly in Spanish, Portuguese, and indigenous languages of the Americas. It rose to particular prominence globally during the second half of the 20th century, largely due to the...
and Lusophone African fiction and a book on the Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
- winning Guatemalan novelist Miguel Ángel Asturias
Miguel Ángel Asturias
Miguel Ángel Asturias Rosales was a Nobel Prize–winning Guatemalan poet, novelist, playwright, journalist and diplomat...
. Henighan has published translations from Spanish, Portuguese and Romanian, notably of the Angolan writer Ondjaki
Ondjaki
Ndalu de Almeida is a writer from Angola, writing under the pen name Ondjaki. He lives in Luanda, the capital of the country, and has written poetry, children's books, short stories, novels, drama and film scripts....
, and the Romanian writer Mihail Sebastian
Mihail Sebastian
-Life:Sebastian was born to a Jewish family in Brăila. After finishing his secondary studies, Sebastian went on to study law in Bucharest, but was soon attracted to the literary life and the exciting ideas of the new generation of Romanian intellectuals, as epitomized by the literary group...
, and is general editor of a translation series run by Biblioasis, a literary publisher based near Windsor
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
, Ontario.
Novels
- Other Americas (1990) Simon & Pierre
- The Places Where Names Vanish (1998) Thistledown Press
- The Streets of Winter (2004) Thistledown Press
Short stories
- Nights in the Yungas (1992) Thistledown Press
- North of Tourism (1999) Cormorant Books
- A Grave in the Air (2007) Thistledown Press
Non-fiction
- Assuming the Light: The Parisian Literary Apprenticeship of Miguel Ángel Asturias (1999) Legenda
- When Words Deny the World: The Reshaping of Canadian Writing (2002) The Porcupine's Quill
- Lost Province: Adventures in a Moldovan Family (2002) Beach Holme Publishing
- A Report on the Afterlife of Culture (2008) Biblioasis
Translations
- Good Morning Comrades (novel by Angolan writer Ondjaki) (2008) Biblioasis
- The Accident (novel by Romanian writer Mihail Sebastian) (2011) Biblioasis
External links
- University of Guelph webpage
- http://www.writersunion.ca/ww_profile.asp?mem=1065&L=H&N=Stephen Henighan
- On Translation
- Henighan's own website
- Stephen Henighan at GeistGeist (magazine)Geist is Canada's most widely read literary magazine. Geist is published four times a year in Vancouver since 1990. The magazine takes its name from the German word geist, meaning "mind" or "spirit."...
.com