Liam Durcan is a Canadian neurologist at the Montreal Neurological Hospital and an Assistant Professor at McGill University.McGill Reporter , Liam Durcan: Straddling the worlds of art and science
/ref> He has published two novels and a collection of short stories: ''A Short Journey by Car'' (Véhicule Press 2004),
/ref> ''Garcia's Heart'' (McClelland & Stewart 2008),McClelland & Stewart , Author: Liam Durcan
/ref> and ''The Measure of Darkness'' (Bellevue Literary Press 2016). Born in Winnipeg, Durcan lived in Detroit briefly as a child, and has been at the Montreal Neurological Institute since 1994.

Writing

Durcan's first novel,Book Lounge , Liam Durcan
/ref> ''Garcia’s Heart'' ( McClelland & Stewart 2008)Amazon.ca , ''Garcia's Heart''
/ref> is set in Montreal. Through an act of graffiti tagging its protagonist Patrick, an entrepreneur in the medical industry who grew up in Montreal, crosses paths with Hernan Garcia, who runs a corner store or dépanneur. As the story unfolds, we find that Garcia was a doctor in Central America prior to arriving in Montreal. Garcia did work for a Central American government that has him on trial at the International Court of Justice at The Hague. Patrick attends Garcia's trial trying to sort out his feelings for his former mentor in light of the new evidence. His endeavour is further complicated when Garcia's daughter - Patrick's first girlfriend - appears.Quill & Quire , Review of ''Garcia's Heart''
/ref> ''Garcia's Heart'' won the 2008

Arthur Ellis Award The Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence, formerly known as the Arthur Ellis Awards, are a group of Canadians, Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the Crime Writers of Canada for the best Canadian crime and Mystery fiction, mys ...

for best first novel. ''The Measure of Darkness'' (Bellevue Literary Press 2016) is Durcan's second novel, and describes the life of an architect, Martin, who has suffered neglect and a severe brain injury as a result of a car accident. Martin cannot remember events from the days leading up to his accident. Relations within Martin's family reflect neglect: he's twice divorced and estranged from his two daughters, though one is an architect at the firm he founded. Martin's brother, who he hasn't seen in decades, comes to help him during his convalescence. While recovering, Martin recalls researching Konstantin Melnikov, a Russian architect during the Soviet era, during his undergraduate days. Martin and his supervising professor visited Melnikov in Moscow. Thoughts of Melnikov help pull Martin through his recovery. Of the novel, Durcan said "there was a story that I needed to tell, perhaps just for myself."Globe & Mail , Liam Durcan: ‘There was a story that I needed to tell, perhaps just for myself’
/ref> The short story collection ''A Short Journey by Car'' (

Véhicule Press The Vehicule Poets was a collective formed in Montreal in the 1970s by poets Endre Farkas, Artie Gold, Tom Konyves, Claudia Lapp, John McAuley, Stephen Morrissey and Ken Norris, who shared an interest in experimental American poetry and Europea ...

2004) was chosen as one of

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

's Top 100 books of 2004. Quill & Quire says of Durcan, "even when he’s falling flat, Durcan is a smooth and confident writer. Some hit-and-miss is inevitable in a collection of this breadth, and Short Journey’s good stuff bodes well for the author’s future work."Quill & Quire , Review of ''A Short Journey by Car''
/ref> Durcan's short fiction has been published in

The Fiddlehead ''The Fiddlehead'' is a Canadian literary magazine, published four times annually at the University of New Brunswick. It is the oldest Canadian literary magazine which is still in circulation. History and profile ''The Fiddlehead'' was establis ...

, Zoetrope, The Antigonish Review, and Maisonneuve.MacMillan US , Author Liam Durcan
/ref>

Awards

Durcan won the 2004 QWF/CBC Quebec short story competition for ''Kick'' (published in ''A Short Journey by Car''), has been nominated for the Journey Prize, and was long-listed for the 2009 Dublin IMPAC prize for his debut novel, ''Garcia’s Heart.''
ontreal Gazette , Liam Durcan Makes IMPAC Long List

References

External links

YouTube , Book Lounge Video Featuring ''Garcia's Heart'' by Liam Durcan

OpenBook Toronto Review of ''Garcia's Heart''

Montreal Gazette interview with Durcan discussing ''The Measure of Darkness''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durcan, Liam Canadian neurologists Living people Canadian male novelists Canadian male short story writers 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian short story writers Writers from Montreal 21st-century Canadian male writers Year of birth missing (living people)