Michael Ondaatje, OC , MA , BA (born September 12, 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. 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, Desiring a better country. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate course of one or two years in duration. ... A Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B., from the Latin Artium Baccalaureus) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or program in the arts and/or sciences. ... September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) is a common year starting on Friday. ... 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... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... The English Patient is a 1992 novel by Michael Ondaatje which deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out the end of World War II in an Italian monastery. ...

Born in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) of Dutch-Tamil-Sinhalese origin, in 1954 he moved to England with his mother. The Tamil people are an ethnic group from South Asia 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. ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: England Travel guide to England from Wikitravel English language English law English (people) List of monarchs of England – Kings of England family tree List of English people Angeln (region in northern Germany, presumably the origin of the Angles for whom England is named) UK...

After relocating to Canada in 1962, Ondaatje became a Canadian citizen. Ondaatje received his BA from the University of Toronto and his MA from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. In the mid-1960s he settled in Toronto. From 1971 to 1983 he taught at York University and since then at Glendon College in Toronto. He and his wife, his fellow novelist and academic Linda Spalding, edit the literary journal, Brick. 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Founded in 1827, the University of Toronto (U of T), in Toronto, Ontario, is the largest university in Canada. ... Queens University, or simply Queens, is a coeducational, nonsectarian university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, on the edge of Lake Ontario. ... Kingston, Ontario, with a population of approximately 146,8381 people, is located in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor at the eastern end of Lake Ontario, where the lake runs into the St. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... York University (YorkU) is a large comprehensive university, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ... Glendon College is a federated school of York University in Toronto, Ontario. ... Template:Hide = Motto: Template:Unhide = Diversity Our Strength City of Toronto, Ontario, Canadas Location. ...

His style of fiction introduced in In the Skin of a Lion and mastered in The English Patient is non-linear. He creates a narrative by exploring many interconnected snapshots in great detail. In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Michael Ondaatje. ... The English Patient is a 1992 novel by Michael Ondaatje which deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out the end of World War II in an Italian monastery. ... In non-technical terms, no matter what the context (whether scientific, philosophical, legal, etc) a narrative is a story, an interpretation of some aspect of the world that is historically and culturally grounded and shaped by human personality (per Walter Fisher). ...

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. He 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). His three films include a documentary on fellow poet bp nichol, The Sons of Captain Poetry. A novel is an extended work of written, narrative, prose fiction, usually in story form; the writer of a novel is a novelist. ... As a literary genre, a memoir forms a subclass of autobiography. ... Poetry (ancient Greek: ποιεω (poieo) = I create) is traditionally a written art form (although there is also an ancient and modern poetry which relies mainly upon oral or pictorial representations) in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to, or instead of, its notional and semantic content. ... Films are produced by recording actual people and objects with cameras, or by creating them using animation techniques and/or special effects. ... 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. ... Poetry (ancient Greek: ποιεω (poieo) = I create) is traditionally a written art form (although there is also an ancient and modern poetry which relies mainly upon oral or pictorial representations) in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to, or instead of, its notional and semantic content. ... Billy the Kid Henry McCarty (November 23, 1859 – July 14, 1881) better known as Billy the Kid but also known by the alias William Henry Bonney, was a 19th century American frontier outlaw and murderer who was a participant in the Lincoln County War. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... Documentary film is a broad category of cinematic expression united by the intent to remain factual or non-fictional. ... Barrie Phillip Nichol (September 30, 1944 _ September 25, Canadian poet. ...

He is also known for four works of fiction:

• 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.
• In the Skin of a Lion—one of the selected books in the 2002 edition of Canada Reads, championed by Steven Page. 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
• Anil's Ghost—winner of the 2000 Giller Prize, the Prix Médicis, and Canada's Governor General's Award.

In 1988 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. The English Patient is a 1992 novel by Michael Ondaatje which deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out the end of World War II in an Italian monastery. ... 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... 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 Picture is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; the awards are voted on by other people within the industry. ... The English Patient is a 1992 novel by Michael Ondaatje which deals with the gradually revealed histories of a critically burned man, his Canadian nurse, a Canadian thief, and an Indian sapper in the British Army as they live out the end of World War II in an Italian monastery. ... In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Michael Ondaatje. ... In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Michael Ondaatje. ... 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 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. ... Steven Page is a lead singer and songwriter of Barenaked Ladies. ... Coming Through Slaughter is a novel by Michael Ondaatje, published in 1976. ... New Orleans (local pronunciations: , , or ) (French: La Nouvelle-Orléans, pronounced in standard French accent) is a major U.S. port city and historically the largest city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. ... 1900 (MCM) is a common year starting on Monday. ... Jazz master Louis Armstrong remains one of the most loved and best known of all jazz musicians. ... Buddy Bolden Charles Buddy Bolden (September 6, 1877 - November 4, 1931) was a trumpeter and the first New Orleans jazz musician ever to come to prominence. ... Ernest J. Bellocq (1873-1949) was a professional photographer who worked in New Orleans during the early 20th century. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Books in Canada First Novel Award has a tumultuous history. ... Anils Ghost (2000) is the critically acclaimed fourth novel by Michael Ondaatje that explores the past of Anil, a Sri Lankan woman returning to learn about her heritage, as she travels through Sri Lanka and is haunted by what she sees. ... 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. ... 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, Desiring a better country. ...

His older brother, Christopher Ondaatje, who also holds the Order of Canada, is a multi-millionaire financier, philanthropist and author of travel books and now lives in the United Kingdom. Sir Christopher Ondaatje, CBE , OC (born February 22, 1933) is a businessman and author. ... Financier (IPA: /ˌfi nãn ˈsjei/) is an elegant term for a person who handles large sums of money, usually involving money lending, financing projects, large-scale investing, or large-scale money management. ... A philanthropist is someone who devotes his time, money, or effort towards helping others. ...

See Also

• Christopher Ondaatje
• Pearl Ondaatje

Sir Christopher Ondaatje, CBE , OC (born February 22, 1933) is a businessman and author. ... Pearl Ondaatje was a pioneer of Radio Ceylon the oldest radio station in South Asia. ...

External links

• Order of Canada Citation

Further reading

• Barbour, Douglas. Michael Ondaatje. ISBN 0805782907
• Ondaatje, Michael. Running in the Family. ISBN 0679746692