Kevin major biography

Canadian author

Kevin Major (born September 12, 1949) is a Canadian author who lives in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador with his wife.^[1] He writes for both young people and adults, including fiction, literary non-fiction, poetry, and plays.

Major was born and raised in Stephenville, Newfoundland. He later moved to St. John's where he attended Memorial University of Newfoundland. Before becoming a writer, he taught school in several parts of the province, including the Eastport Peninsula in Bonavista Bay.^[1] His early novels are known for exploring issues such as adolescence and family. The novels were usually set on the island of Newfoundland. In 1992, he was awarded the Vicky Metcalf Award for his body of work. His more recent books are mostly adult fiction, including the Sebastian Synard murder mystery series.

Bibliography

• 1978 – Hold FastISBN 0-88899-579-2, ISBN 0-88899-579-2 (nominated: Books in Canada First Novel Award; winner: Governor General's Award, Book-of-the-Year CACL, Ruth Schwartz Award; placed on
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  Kevin Major is the author of 20 books, for both young people and adults. The first, Hold Fast, won several awards in Canada and was placed on the Hans Christian Andersen Honour List. It was released in 2014 as a feature film. His second book, Far From Shore, was the winner of the first Canadian Young Adult Book Award. Others which followed include Blood Red Ochre and Eating Between the Lines, winner of the CACL Book-of-the-Year Award.

  In 1992 Kevin was given the Vicky Metcalf Award, for an outstanding body of work of significance to young people. The languages into which his work has been translated include French, Danish, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Hebrew.

  An adult novel, No Man’s Land, about the Newfoundland Regiment in World War I, was published in 1995 to much acclaim. Kevin’s adaption of the story was brought to the stage by Rising Tide Theatre and has played for more than a dozen years.

  His more recent books include the Christmas classic The House of Wooden Santas, and a history of Newfoundland and Labrador: As Near To Heaven By Sea (a Canadian

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  Waterfront Views

  No Man's Land

  Kevin Major’s novel No Man’s Land (1996) tells the story of the First Newfoundland Regiment and its preparation for and participation in the battle at Beaumont Hamel on July 1, 1916 as part of the opening day of the Battle of the Somme. Widely accepted as one of the greatest disasters in Newfoundland’s history, of the 790 Newfoundlanders at the battle 272 died and 438 were wounded. Major’s fictionalization of this tragic event centres around Alan Hayward, a second lieutenant in the regiment who is responsible for a platoon of soldiers. From this perspective, Major’s novel relates the difficult conditions facing the Newfoundland Regiment and how they sought comfort and support in their local customs and traditions.

  No Man’s Land opens in Louvencourt, away from the front lines, where the Regiment is training for the Great Push that will begin on an undisclosed day in the near future. Despite a general sense of foreboding, the Regiment is relatively at ease and able to enjoy life in the French countryside. This period of preparation, however, r