Mireille Silcoff (born February 1, 1973, in Montreal) is a Canadian author, journalist, and editor. She is the author of four books, including the work of fiction ''Chez L'arabe'' (Anansi).

Biography

Silcoff was a longstanding columnist with the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.

'' and is a contributor to publications including ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. The magazi ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', and ''

Ha'aretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew and English in the Berliner fo ...

''. She is the founding editor of ''Guilt & Pleasure Quarterly'', "a magazine of new Jewish writing and ideas" (2005-2007), and the founder of a Toronto-based discussion salon (2004-2006) that was connected to the magazine. In 2006, Silcoff stepped away from all journalism, magazine work, and public appearances after developing the rare neurological syndrome, chronic

cerebrospinal fluid leak A cerebrospinal fluid leak (CSF leak or CSFL) is a medical condition where the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) that surrounds the brain and spinal cord leaks out of one or more holes or tears in the dura mater. A CSF leak is classed as either spontane ...

s. After years of being bedridden, she began writing again for the ''National Post'' in 2010 and for ''The New York Times Magazine'' in 2011. The partially autobiographical ''Chez L'arabe'' describes her cloistered world of severe illness. From the age of 19 to 24, Silcoff was a music journalist specializing in nightclub culture. Up until 2001, she published under the pen name Mireille Silcott, authoring two books under that name, ''Rave America'' (ECW Press, 1998) and ''The Book of E'' (Omnibus Press, 2000, co-authored with Push).

''Chez L'arabe''

The short story collection ''Chez L'arabe'' was named one of The Globe 100: The best books of 2014 by ''The Globe and Mail''. Reviews were unanimously strong throughout Canada and internationally. It was named one of the best books of the year by The Montreal Gazette, CBC Books, The Walrus, and others. ''Chez L'arabe'' won prizes, including the Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Short Story Collection and second prize for the Danuta Gleed Award for the Short Story; it was also long-listed for the Frank O'Connor International Prize for the Short Story. It was voted Canada's favourite short story collection of 2014 on CBC Canada Writes. The collection came out in French translation in the fall of 2016, published by Marchand de feuilles. Individual short stories from the collection were published on Electric Literature and Five Dials.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silcoff, Mireille 1973 births Living people 21st-century Canadian short story writers Canadian editors Canadian women editors Canadian women short story writers Writers from Montreal 21st-century Canadian women writers