Cherie Dimaline facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cherie Dimaline
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Dimaline at the Eden Mills Writers' Festival in 2016
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| Born | 2 July 1975 |
| Occupation | Author |
| Genre | Fiction, Young adult |
Cherie Dimaline is a talented writer and a member of the Georgian Bay Métis Council. She is part of the Métis Nation of Ontario. She is best known for her 2017 novel, The Marrow Thieves. This book is for young adults and talks about the ongoing unfair treatment of Indigenous peoples.
Dimaline won an award for her first novel, Red Rooms. It was named Fiction Book of the Year at the Anskohk Aboriginal Literature Festival. She has also written short stories like "Seven Gifts for Cedar". Her other books include The Girl Who Grew a Galaxy and A Gentle Habit. In 2019, she edited Little Bird Stories (Volume IX). This book featured winners of a writing contest.
She was the first editor of Muskrat Magazine. In 2014, she was named the Emerging Artist of the Year. This award was from the Ontario Premier's Awards for Excellence in Arts. She also became the first Indigenous writer-in-residence for the Toronto Public Library. Her novel VenCo was published in 2023.
About Cherie Dimaline
Cherie Dimaline grew up in a Métis community near Georgian Bay. She now lives in Toronto. She spent her summers in her Métis community. There, she learned many stories from her family. She then shared these stories with her cousins.
When she was younger, she worked as a magician's assistant. Later, Dimaline had many different jobs. She worked as a museum curator. She was also a manager for an investment company. She even directed a women's resource center.
Dimaline has written for many projects. She contributed to a book called Mitêwâcimowina. This book is about Indigenous science fiction. It was published in 2016. She also wrote columns and edited for Chatelaine magazine. This was in the early 2000s.
Dimaline sees herself as a Métis or Indigenous writer. She does not call herself a Canadian writer. She says, "I would love to be recognized as a writer of Indigenous stories. I'm not a Canadian writer. This is what is now known as Canada; it means something different to and for me."
Community and Festivals
Cherie Dimaline often takes part in literary festivals. These events celebrate books and writers. She has been to the Kingston WritersFest. She also attended the Toronto International Festival of Authors. She has been a guest at the Ottawa Writers Festival many times. Other festivals include Wordfest Imaginairium and Vancouver Writers Fest.
Awards and Recognition
In 2014, Cherie Dimaline won the Emerging Artist of the Year award. This was at the Ontario Premier's Awards for Excellence in the Arts.
Her book The Marrow Thieves won several big awards. It won the Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature in 2017. It also won the 2017 Kirkus Prize for young adult literature. The book was a finalist in the CBC's 2018 Canada Reads competition. It was also considered for the 2018 White Pine Award.
When The Marrow Thieves won the Governor General's Award, Dimaline's friend, Susan Blight, gave the acceptance speech. She spoke in Anishinaabemowin. Dimaline said she wrote the speech, and her friend delivered it without translation. This was the first time an acceptance speech for this award was given in an Indigenous language. It was a very special moment.
In 2021, Dimaline received the Writers' Trust Engel/Findley Award. Her book Into the Bright Open: A Secret Garden Remix was also nominated for the Governor General's Award for English-language children's literature in 2024.
