David Bergen

Bergen was born on January 14, 1957 in Port Edward, a small fishing village in British Columbia, and later grew up in the small town of Niverville, Manitoba.[3] He went to Bible college in British Columbia and Red River College in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where he studied creative communication. He taught English and Creative Writing at Winnipeg's Kelvin High School until 2002.[3]

Raised Mennonite,[2] Bergen has noted that the tendency of the church to stifle questions and criticism affected his decision to write fiction. "Writing is a way of figuring things out," he says. "If you can't ask certain questions in church, maybe you can ask them in fiction." [3]

His debut novel, A Year of Lesser in 1996, was a New York Times Notable Book and winner of the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award. His 2002 novel The Case of Lena S. was a finalist for the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction and won the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award. It was also a finalist for the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award, and the Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction.

His 2005 novel The Time in Between won the Scotiabank Giller Prize, received a coveted starred review in the Kirkus Reviews trade magazine, and was recently longlisted for the 2007 International Dublin Literary Award. In 2008 he published his fifth novel, The Retreat, which was longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and which won the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award, and the Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction. In 2010 he was shortlisted again for the Scotiabank Giller Prize for his sixth novel, The Matter with Morris, which was also shortlisted for the 2012 International Dublin Literary Award.[4]

He is also the author of a collection of short fiction, Sitting Opposite My Brother (1993), which was a finalist for the Manitoba Book of the Year. His most recent short story collection, Here the Dark, was published in 2020,[5] and was shortlisted for the Giller Prize.[6]

• 1993 Finalist, Manitoba Book of the Year — Sitting Opposite My Brother
• 1996 John Hirsch Award — A Year of Lesser
• 1996 McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award — A Year of Lesser
• 1999 CBC Literary Award, Short Story — How Can 'N' Men Share a Bottle of Vodka
• 2002 Short list, Governor General's Award — The Case of Lena S.
• 2002 Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award — The Case of Lena S.
• 2002 Finalist, McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award — The Case of Lena S.
• 2002 Finalist, Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction — The Case of Lena S.
• 2005 Giller Prize — The Time in Between
• 2005 McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award — The Time in Between
• 2007 Long list, International Dublin Literary Award — The Time in Between
• 2008 Long list, Giller Prize — The Retreat
• 2008 McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award — The Retreat
• 2008 Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction — The Retreat
• 2010 Shortlist, Giller Prize — The Matter With Morris
• 2012 Shortlist, International Dublin Literary Award — The Matter with Morris
• 2013 The Age of Hope chosen for Canada Reads - Defended by Ron Maclean
• 2016 Longlist, Scotiabank Giller Prize - Stranger
• 2018 Matt Cohen Award
• 2020 Shortlist, Scotiabank Giller Prize - Here the Dark

• Description of David Bergen's archives at the University of Manitoba Archives & Special Collections
• David Bergen's entry in The Canadian Encyclopedia
• Profile at Manitoba Writers' Guild