Mary Lawson (born 1946) is a Canadian

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

Biography

Born in southwestern

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, she spent her childhood in Blackwell, Ontario, and is a distant relative of

L. M. Montgomery Lucy Maud Montgomery (November 30, 1874 – April 24, 1942), published as L. M. Montgomery, was a Canadian author best known for a collection of novels, essays, short stories, and poetry beginning in 1908 with ''Anne of Green Gables''. She ...

, author of ''

Anne of Green Gables ''Anne of Green Gables'' is a 1908 novel by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery (published as L. M. Montgomery). Written for all ages, it has been considered a classic children's novel since the mid-20th century. Set in the late 19th century, t ...

''. Her father worked as a research chemist. With a psychology degree in hand 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 ...

, Lawson took a trip to Britain and ended up accepting a job as an industrial psychologist. She married a British psychologist, Richard Mobbs. Lawson spent her summers in the north, and the landscape inspired her to use Northern Ontario as her settings for both her novels.Fulford, Robert. "Author uncovers a remote possibility: Lawson Reinvents rural literature for a new century." ''National Post''. 13 February 2007: Print. Lawson later admitted that Muskoka, where she spent her summers, "isn't and never was the North", but the area now called Cottage Country "felt like it" to people from the south. She has two grown-up sons and lives in

Kingston-Upon-Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

. In a book review, T. F. Rigelhof 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 ...

'' stated: "Within days you'll see people reading '' Crow Lake'' in odd places as they take quick breaks from the business of their lives. You'll also hear people say 'I stayed up all night reading this book by Mary Lawson. Mary Lawson, Mary Lawson. Remember the name." Robert Fulford of the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

'' wrote an article about Lawson describing her process towards becoming a novelist. After settling down, she wrote short fiction for women's magazines and then graduated to her

first novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

. Lawson was in her 50s when she wrote it, and spent years perfecting it. She decided she disliked her first novel and then spent five more years writing until ''Crow Lake'' was complete. It took her 3 more years to find a publisher. On the ''National Post''s Paperback Fiction Best-Sellers list in 2007, Lawson's second novel, ''

The Other Side of the Bridge ''The Other Side of the Bridge'' is the second novel by Canadian novelist Mary Lawson. It became a bestseller in Canada, and was longlisted for The Booker Prize. Plot summary As with her first novel, '' Crow Lake'', the setting is Northern Onta ...

'', took the number-one spot. An article featuring Mary Lawson was published in the ''McGill News'' magazine by Neale Mcdevitt and Daniel Mccabe. After her first novel, the article describes Mary Lawson as surprised by her success: "I really didn't know what I had done right. I didn't know if I could do it again." Her first novel, ''Crow Lake'', was published in 22 countries and landed her a guest appearance on the

Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...

, and several positive reviews in the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

, the

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

, and many other publications. Her second novel, ''The Other Side of the Bridge'', also did well. She received good reviews from ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', and the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

''. This second novel held promise of being on the Maclean magazine's list of Canadian bestsellers. '' A Town Called Solace'' was longlisted for the 2021

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

Bibliography

* '' Crow Lake'' (2002) ** in French: Cécile Arnaud transl., ''Le choix des Morrison.'' Belfond, Paris 2003 ** in German: Sabine Lohmann, Andreas Gressmann transl.: ''Rückkehr nach Crow Lake.'' Heyne, Munich 2002 * ''

'' (2006) ** in French: Michèle Valencia transl., ''L'autre côté du pont.'' Belfond, Paris 2007 ** in German: Sabine Lohmann, transl.: ''Auf der anderen Seite des Flusses.'' Heyne, 2006 * '' Road Ends'' (2013) ** in French: Michèle Valencia transl., ''Un hiver long et rude.'' Belfond, Paris 2014 * '' A Town Called Solace'' (2021) ** in French: Valérie Bourgeois transl., ''Des âmes consolées.'' 10-18, Paris 2023

Awards and recognition

* 2002: winner,

Books in Canada First Novel Award The Amazon.ca First Novel Award, formerly the Books in Canada First Novel Award, is a Canadian literary award, co-presented by Amazon.ca and ''The Walrus'' to the best first novel in English published the previous year by a citizen or resident of ...

, ''Crow Lake'' * 2003: winner,

McKitterick Prize The McKitterick Prize is a United Kingdom literary prize. It is administered by the Society of Authors. It was endowed by Tom McKitterick, who had been an editor of ''The Political Quarterly'' but had also written a novel which was never publ ...

, ''Crow Lake'' * 2006: longlisted,

Man Booker Prize for Fiction The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

, ''The Other Side of the Bridge'' * 2005: winner, Evergreen Award, ''Crow Lake''"Mary Lawson"
''Canadian Books & Authors''. * 2006: shortlisted,

Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize The Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, formerly known as the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, is a Canadian literary award presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition of works submitted by publishers. A ...

, ''The Other Side of the Bridge'' * 2021: longlisted, Booker Prize for Fiction, ''A Town Called Solace ''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawson, Mary 1946 births Living people Canadian expatriates in England Canadian women novelists McGill University Faculty of Science alumni People from Sarnia Writers from Ontario 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian women writers Canadian expatriate writers Amazon.ca First Novel Award winners