Philip Michael Ondaatje, OC (born 12 September 1943) is a Canadian/Sri Lankan novelist and poet perhaps best known for his Booker Prize winning novel adapted into an Academy-Award-winning film, The English Patient. Seal of the Order of Canada The Order of Canada is Canadas highest civilian honour, with membership awarded to those who exemplify the Orders Latin motto Desiderantes meliorem patriam, which means (those) desiring a better country. ... Portal:Currentevents September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... The Man Booker Prize for Fiction, also known as the Man Booker Prize, or simply the Man Booker, is one of the worlds most important literary prizes, and awarded each year for the best original novel written by a citizen of the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland in... The references in this article would be clearer with a different and/or consistent style of citation, footnoting or external linking. ... This article is on the book. ...

Life and work

Born in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) of Dutch-Tamil-Sinhalese-Portuguese origin, in 1954 he moved to England with his mother. The Tamil people are an ethnic group from the Indian subcontinent with a recorded history going back more than two millennia. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ...

After relocating to Canada in 1962, Ondaatje became a Canadian citizen. Ondaatje studied for a time at Bishop's University, but moved to Toronto and received his BA from the University of Toronto and his MA from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and began teaching at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. In 1970 he settled in Toronto. From 1971 to 1988 he taught English Literature at York University and Glendon College in Toronto. The University of Toronto (U of T) is a coeducational public research university in Toronto, Ontario. ... Queens University, or simply Queens, is a coeducational, nonsectarian university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, on the edge of Lake Ontario. ... Murney Tower, Kingston. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Official languages None Flower White Trillium Tree Eastern White Pine Bird Common Loon Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant-Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Parliamentary representation  - House seats  - Senate seats 106 24 Area Total... The University of Western Ontario (popularly known as Western or UWO) is a coeducational, non-denominational, research-intensive university located in London, Ontario, Canada. ... Nickname: The Forest City Coordinates: Country Canada Province Ontario County Middlesex County Settled 1826 (as village) Incorporated 1855 (as city) City Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best Governing Body London City Council MPs Sue Barnes (LPC) Glen Pearson (LPC) Irene Mathyssen (NDP) Joe Preston (CPC) MPPs Chris Bentley (OLP) Deb Matthews... York University, located in Toronto, Ontario, is Canadas third-largest university. ... Glendon College is a federated school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with a student population of about 2200. ...

He and his wife, novelist and academic Linda Spalding, co-edit Brick, A Literary Journal, with Michael Redhill, Michael Helm, and Esta Spalding. Linda Spalding is a Canadian writer and editor. ... Brick is a Canadian literary magazine published twice a year. ... Michael Redhill (born June 12, 1966 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American-born Canadian poet, playwright and novelist. ... Michael Helm is a Canadian novelist. ... Esta Spalding is a Canadian author and poet who won the Pat Lowther Award in 2000 for Lost August. ...

His style of fiction introduced in Coming Through Slaughter (1976) and mastered in The English Patient (1992) is non-linear. He creates a narrative by exploring many interconnected snapshots in great detail. Coming Through Slaughter is a novel by Michael Ondaatje, published in 1976. ...

Although he is best known as a novelist, Ondaatje's work also encompasses memoir, poetry, and film. His memoir of his Sri Lankan childhood is called Running in the Family (1982). He has published thirteen books of poetry, and won the Governor General's Award for two books of poetry: The Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970) and There's a Trick With a Knife I'm Learning to Do: Poems 1973-1978 (1979). Since their creation in 1937, the Governor Generals Literary Awards have become one of Canadas most prestigious prizes, awarded in both French and English in seven categories: Fiction, Non-fiction, Poetry, Drama, Childrens Literature-Text, Childrens Literature-Illustration, and Translation. ...

The Collected Works of Billy the Kid and Coming Through Slaughter have been adapted for the stage and produced in numerous theatrical productions across North America. Ondaatje's three films include a documentary on fellow poet bp nichol, Sons of Captain Poetry, and The Clinton Special: A Film About The Farm Show, which chronicles a collaborative theatre experience led in 1971 by Paul Thompson of Theatre Passe Muraille. In 2002 he published a non-fiction book, The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film, which won special recognition at the 2003 American Cinema Editors Awards, as well as a Kraszna-Krausz Book Award for best book of the year on the moving image. Barrie Phillip Nichol (September 30, 1944 _ September 25, Canadian poet. ... Theatre Passe Muraille, theatre company in Toronto, Canada. ...

Ondaatje has, since the 1960s, also been involved with Toronto's influential Coach House Books, supporting the independent small press by working as a poetry editor. Coach House Press is an independent press located in Toronto, Canada. ...

He is also known for four other works of fiction:

• Anil's Ghost—winner of the 2000 Giller Prize, the Prix Médicis, the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize, the 2001 Irish Times International Fiction Prize and Canada's Governor General's Award.
• The English Patient—winner of the Booker Prize, the Canada Australia Prize, and the Canadian Governor General's Award and later made into a motion picture, winning the Academy Award for Best Picture. The English Patient can be considered a sequel to In the Skin of a Lion (1987).
• In the Skin of a Lion—winner of the 1988 City of Toronto Book Award and finalist for the 1987 Ritz Paris Hemingway Award for best novel of the year in English. It was selected for the first "Canada Reads" edition in 2002. A fictional story about early immigrant settlers in Toronto, In the Skin of a Lion eventually won the competition.
• Coming Through Slaughter—a fictional story of New Orleans, Louisiana about 1900, very loosely based on the lives of jazz pioneer Buddy Bolden and photographer E. J. Bellocq. Winner of the 1976 Books in Canada First Novel Award

In 1988 Michael Ondaatje was made an Officer of the Order of Canada (OC) and two years later became a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Anils Ghost (2000) is the critically acclaimed fourth novel by Michael Ondaatje. ... The Giller Prize is an annual award that goes to the author of the best Canadian novel or short story fiction collection published in English. ... The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November. ... The 2000 Governor Generals Awards for Literary Merit were presented by Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada, and Jean-Louis Roux, Chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts, on November 14 at Rideau Hall. ... This article is on the book. ... Each winner of the 1992 Governor Generals Awards for Literary Merit received $10 000 dollars and a medal from the Governor General of Canada. ... // The Academy Award for Best Motion Picture is one of the Academy Awards, awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which are voted on by others within the industry. ... In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Canadian/Sri Lankan writer Michael Ondaatje. ... In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Canadian/Sri Lankan writer Michael Ondaatje. ... The City of Toronto Book Award is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the city of Toronto to the author of the years best fiction or non-fiction book or books about or involving Toronto. ... Canada Reads is an annual battle of the books competition organized and broadcast by Canadas public broadcaster, the CBC. Overview During Canada Reads, five personalities champion five different books, each champion extolling the merits of one of the titles over a series of five programs. ... Coming Through Slaughter is a novel by Michael Ondaatje, published in 1976. ... Nickname: The Crescent City, The Big Easy, The City That Care Forgot, NOLA (acronym for New Orleans, LA) Location in the State of Louisiana and the United States Coordinates: Country United States State Louisiana Parish Orleans Founded 1718 Mayor Ray Nagin (D) Area    - City 350. ... Jazz is a musical art form that originated in New Orleans at around the start of the 20th century. ... Buddy Bolden Charles Buddy Bolden (September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931) was a cornetist and the first New Orleans jazz musician to come to prominence. ... Ernest J. Bellocq (1873-1949) was a professional photographer who worked in New Orleans during the early 20th century. ... The Books in Canada First Novel Award has a tumultuous history. ... Seal of the Order of Canada The Order of Canada is Canadas highest civilian honour, with membership awarded to those who exemplify the Orders Latin motto Desiderantes meliorem patriam, which means (those) desiring a better country. ... American Academy of Arts and Letters is an organization whose goal is to foster, assist, and sustain an interest in American literature, music, and art. ...

Bibliography

• The Dainty Monsters - 1967
• Leonard Cohen - 1969 (essay)
• The Man with Seven Toes - 1969
• The Collected Works of Billy the Kid - 1970
• The Broken Ark: A Book of Beasts - 1971 (editor)
• Rat Jelly - 1973
• Coming Through Slaughter - 1976
• Personal Fictions: Stories by Munro, Wiebe, Thomas, and Blaise - 1977 (editor)
• Elimination Dance - 1978
• There's a Trick with a Knife I'm Learning to Do - 1979
• The Long Poem Anthology - 1979 (editor)
• Tin Roof - 1982
• Claude Glass - 1982
• Running in the Family - 1982
• Secular Love - 1984
• In the Skin of a Lion - 1987
• From Ink Lake: Canadian Stories - 1990 (editor)
• The Brick Reader - 1991 (edited with Linda Spalding)
• The Cinnamon Peeler - 1991
• The English Patient - 1992
• Handwriting - 1998
• Lost Classics - 2000 (edited with Michael Redhill, Esta Spalding and Linda Spalding)
• Anil's Ghost - 2000
• The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film - 2002
• The Story - 2005

Coming Through Slaughter is a novel by Michael Ondaatje, published in 1976. ... In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Canadian/Sri Lankan writer Michael Ondaatje. ... This article is on the book. ... Anils Ghost (2000) is the critically acclaimed fourth novel by Michael Ondaatje. ...

See also

• Burghers
• Colombo Chettys
• Christopher Ondaatje
• Kim Ondaatje
• Pearl Ondaatje

Burgher can refer to: A title. ... // Origins Colombo Chetty are a formerly endogamous Sri Lankan social group or caste. ... Sir Philip Christopher Ondaatje, KBE , OC (born February 22, 1933) is a businessman and author. ... Kim Ondaatje (née Betty Jane Kimbark, October 2, 1928) is a Canadian painter, photographer, and documentary filmmaker. ... Pearl Ondaatje was a pioneer of Radio Ceylon the oldest radio station in South Asia. ...

External links

• Order of Canada Citation
• Salon Interview With Ondaatje
• Ondaatje family history
• Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry Ondaatje is a founding trustee.
• Films by Michael Ondaatje

Further reading

• Barbour, Douglas, Michael Ondaatje, (New York: Twayne, 1993). ISBN 0-8057-8290-7
• Jewinski, Ed, Michael Ondaatje: Express Yourself Beautifully, (Toronto: ECW, 1994). ISBN 1-55022-189-2