Avenue of Champions

Daniel is a young Métis man searching for a way to exist in a world of lateral violence, intergenerational trauma and systemic racism. Facing obstacles of his own at every turn, he observes and learns from the lived realities of his family members, friends, teachers and lovers. He finds hope in the inherent connection of Indigenous Peoples to the land, and the permanence of culture, language and ceremony in the face of displacement.

Set in Edmonton, this story considers Indigenous youth in relation to the urban constructs and colonial spaces in which they survive — from violence, whitewashing, trauma and racism to language revitalization, relationships with Elders, restaking land claims and ultimately, triumph. Based on Papaschase and Métis oral histories and lived experience, Conor Kerr's debut novel will not soon be forgotten. (From Nightwood Editions)

Avenue of Champions is a finalist for the 2022 Amazon Canada First Novel Award. 

Conor Kerr is a Métis and Ukrainian educator, writer and harvester. He is a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta and is descended from the Gladue, Ginther and Quinn families from the Lac Ste. Anne and Fort Des Prairies Métis communities and the Papaschase Cree Nation. Kerr is a harvester and labrador retriever enthusiast. His poem Prairie Ritual was on the 2021 CBC Poetry Prize longlist. 

Avenue of Champions is on the 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize longlist.

• 14 Canadian authors longlisted for $100K Scotiabank Giller Prize

Interviews with Conor Kerr

5:18An Edmonton writer's first novel is up for a big Canadian writing prize

The finalists for a major Canadian writing award have just been announced, and Edmonton writer Conor Kerr is on the list. He's one of the six finalists up for the $60,000 presented by Amazon Canada and The Walrus magazine.