June 05, 2020 - 7:05 AM
ORILLIA, Ont. - Heidi Jacobs is this year's winner of the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour.
The University of Windsor librarian received the $15,000 honour Friday for her Edmonton-set anti-romance, "Molly of the Mall: Literary Lass and Purveyor of Fine Footwear."
Published by NeWest Press, the book follows aspiring novelist Molly MacGregor's unromantic travails as a shoe seller at the West Edmonton Mall.
Born and raised in Edmonton, Jacobs worked a variety of retail jobs, including in footwear, while studying at the University of Alberta.
The runners-up are Amy Spurway for her novel "Crow," published by Goose Lane Editions, and Drew Hayden Taylor for his play "Cottagers and Indians," published by Talonbooks. They will each receive $3,000.
Organizers say the honourees will receive their prizes by mail after this year's festivities were cancelled because of COVID-19 restrictions.
The authors will also be belatedly celebrated at a 2021 gala dinner in Orillia, Ont.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2020.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2020