John Keith Harrison (June 18, 1945 – April 10, 2019) was a Canadian novelist. He published five novels.

Early life and education

Harrison was born in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia, Canada. His education included an English degree from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

in 1967, a Master of Arts from

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

in 1968, and a Ph.D. from

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

in 1972, in which he focused on the literature of

Malcolm Lowry Clarence Malcolm Lowry (; 28 July 1909 – 26 June 1957) was an English poet and novelist who is best known for his 1947 novel ''Under the Volcano'', which was voted No. 11 in the Modern Library's 100 Best Novels list.

.Harrison, Keith
, ABC BookWorld. Retrieved April 23, 2012.

Writing and teaching career

Harrison taught in the English department at

Dawson College Dawson College is an English-language public college in Westmount and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The college is situated near the heart of Downtown Montreal in a former nunnery on approximately of green space. It is the largest CEGEP in the p ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec, and was chair of the creative writing department at

Malaspina University-College Vancouver Island University (abbreviated as VIU, formerly known as Malaspina University-College and Malaspina College) is a Canadian public research university serving Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia. Malaspina College opened in 196 ...

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating fr ...

.Moreau, Vivian (January 6, 2002). "Keith Harrison: Records the voices of sea and rainforest", ''

Times Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific ...

'', p. D8. He continued to teach at the same institution, which became

Vancouver Island University Vancouver Island University (abbreviated as VIU, formerly known as Malaspina University-College and Malaspina College) is a Canadian public research university serving Vancouver Island and coastal British Columbia. Malaspina College opened in 196 ...

. His novels include ''Eyemouth'' (1990), a story of four characters from a Scottish fishing village around the turn of the 19th century. Told entirely in the form of letters, the novel was a finalist for the QSPELL Awards, which recognize books written by English-speaking Quebec residents. ''Furry Creek'', his 1999 "true-life novel", recounts the story of the murder of British Columbia poet

Pat Lowther Patricia Louise Lowther (born Patricia Louise Tinmuth) (July 29, 1935 – September 24, 1975) was a Canadian poet. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, she grew up in the neighboring city of North Vancouver. Life Lowther's first published poem ...

. In a generally positive review, writer Mark Anthony Jarman said, "The best parts of Furry Creek ... are fascinating and evocative ... Lowther's troubled shadow looms behind the text ... This is a kind of magic trick on the part of Keith Harrison, a labour of love, a monument to a writer's memory ..." It was nominated for the

Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize The Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, established in 1985 as one of the BC and Yukon Book Prizes, is awarded annually to the best work of fiction by a resident of British Columbia, Canada. The award is named after novelist and short story A short ...

. He edited the 2001 anthology ''Islands West'', a compilation of short stories authored by writers from the west coast of Canada. Harrison lived on Hornby Island with his wife, JoAnn, whom he had known since elementary school. He died on April 10, 2019.Keith Harrison
obituary. Retrieved April 24, 2019.

Novels

* ''Dead Ends'' (1981) * ''After Six Days'' (1985) * ''Eyemouth'' (1990) * ''Furry Creek'' (1999) * ''Elliot & Me'' (2006)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Keith 1945 births 2019 deaths Canadian historical novelists Novelists from Vancouver People from the Comox Valley Regional District University of British Columbia alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni McGill University alumni Academic staff of Dawson College Academic staff of Vancouver Island University Canadian male novelists 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers Novelists from Quebec