John Keith Harrison (June 18, 1945 – April 10, 2019) was a Canadian novelist. He published five novels.

Early life and education

Harrison was born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, British Columbia, Canada. His education included an English degree from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in 1967, a Master of Arts from

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1968, and a Ph.D. from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1972, in which he focused on the literature of

Malcolm Lowry Clarence Malcolm Lowry (; 28 July 1909 – 26 June 1957) was an English poet and novelist who is best known for his 1947 novel ''Under the Volcano'', which was voted No. 11 in the Modern Library 100 Best Novels list.

.Harrison, Keith
, ABC BookWorld. Retrieved April 23, 2012.

Writing and teaching career

Harrison taught in the English department at

Dawson College Dawson College (French: ''Collège Dawson)'' is an English-language public general and vocational college in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The college is situated near the heart of Downtown Montreal in a former nunnery on approximately 12 acre ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, Quebec, and was chair of the creative writing department at

Malaspina University-College Vancouver Island University (abbreviated as VIU, formerly known as Malaspina University-College and earlier as Malaspina College) is a Canadian public university serving Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia. Malaspina College began in 196 ...

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

.Moreau, Vivian (January 6, 2002). "Keith Harrison: Records the voices of sea and rainforest", ''

Times Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily Co ...

'', p. D8. He continued to teach at the same institution, which became

Vancouver Island University Vancouver Island University (abbreviated as VIU, formerly known as Malaspina University-College and earlier as Malaspina College) is a Canadian public university serving Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia. Malaspina College began in 196 ...

. His novels include ''Eyemouth'' (1990), a story of four characters from a Scottish fishing village around the turn of the 19th century. Told entirely in the form of letters, the novel was a finalist for the QSPELL Awards, which recognize books written by English-speaking Quebec residents. ''Furry Creek'', his 1999 "true-life novel", recounts the story of the murder of British Columbia poet

Pat Lowther Patricia Louise Lowther (born Patricia Louise Tinmuth) (July 29, 1935 – September 24, 1975) was a Canadian poet. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, she grew up in the neighboring city of North Vancouver. Life Lowther's first published poem ...

. In a generally positive review, writer

Mark Anthony Jarman Mark Anthony Jarman (born 11 June 1955 in Edmonton, Alberta) is a Canadian fiction writer. Jarman's work includes the novel ''Salvage King, Ya!'', the short story collection ''Knife Party at the Hotel Europa'' and the travel book ''Ireland's Eye. ...

said, "The best parts of Furry Creek ... are fascinating and evocative ... Lowther's troubled shadow looms behind the text ... This is a kind of magic trick on the part of Keith Harrison, a labour of love, a monument to a writer's memory ..." It was nominated for the

Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize The Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, established in 1985 as one of the BC and Yukon Book Prizes, is awarded annually to the best work of fiction by a resident of British Columbia, Canada. The award is named after novelist and short story A short stor ...

. He edited the 2001 anthology ''Islands West'', a compilation of short stories authored by writers from the west coast of Canada. Harrison lived on

Hornby Island Hornby Island of British Columbia, Canada, is one of the two northernmost Gulf Islands, located near Vancouver Island's Comox Valley, the other being Denman Island. A small community of 1,016 residents (as of the 2016 census), Hornby is home to ...

with his wife, JoAnn, whom he had known since elementary school. He died on April 10, 2019.Keith Harrison
obituary. Retrieved April 24, 2019.

Novels

* ''Dead Ends'' (1981) * ''After Six Days'' (1985) * ''Eyemouth'' (1990) * ''Furry Creek'' (1999) * ''Elliot & Me'' (2006)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Keith 1945 births 2019 deaths Canadian historical novelists Novelists from Vancouver People from the Comox Valley Regional District University of British Columbia alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni McGill University alumni Academic staff of Dawson College Academic staff of Vancouver Island University Canadian male novelists 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers