- Adele Wiseman
Adele Wiseman (
21 May 1928 –1 June 1992 ) was a Canadian author.Born in
Winnipeg, Manitoba , she received a B.A. from theUniversity of Manitoba in 1949. Her parents were Russian-Jews who emigrated from theUkraine to Canada, in part, to escape thepogroms that accompanied theRussian Civil War .In 1956, Wiseman published her first novel, "The Sacrifice," which won the
Governor General's Award , Canada's most prestigious literary prize. Her only other novel, "Crackpot," was published in 1974. Both novels deal with Jewish immigrant heritage, the struggle to survivethe Depression andWorld War II , and the challenges the next generation faced in acculturating to Canadian society.Wiseman also published plays, children's stories, essays, and other non-fiction. Her book, "Old Woman at Play," examines and meditates on the creative process while paying tribute to Wiseman's mother and the dolls she made.
Wiseman was lifelong friends with
Margaret Laurence , another Canadian author from Manitoba. Her nephew,Jacques Distler , is a theoretical physicist. She was an active and accessible Writer-in-Residence at the University of Windsor in her final years. At a campus rally against the First Gulf War, she read passionately a new poem denouncing war.elected works
* "The Sacrifice" (1956)
* "Old Markets, New World" (1964)
* "Crackpot" (1974)
* "Old Woman at Play" (1978)
* "Memoirs of a Book Molesting Childhood and Other Essays" (1987)
* "Kenji and the Cricket" (1988)
* "Puccini and the Prowlers" (1992)Further reading
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References
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External links
* [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0008664 Adele Wiseman] at
The Canadian Encyclopedia
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.