Toronto Doctor Wins Canada's Giller Prize

Vincent Lam, an emergency-room physician, received the Scotiabank Giller Prize, Canada's richest literary prize, at a ceremony last night. Lam beat out four other shortlisted authors, with Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures, about a group of young physicians, to receive Canada's premier literary prize for fiction.

"I am astounded and in many ways overcome," Lam said in his acceptance speech, the Toronto Star reported. The award, named for the late literary journalist Doris Giller, comes with a cash prize of $40,000 and a small bronze statue. Giller's husband, Jack Rabinovitch, founded the prize in 1994. Previous winner Margaret Atwood presented Dr. Lam with the prize.

The other finalists, who will each receive $2,500, were Rawi Hage for De Niro's Game, Pascale Quiviger for The Perfect Circle, Gaetan Soucyvwas for The Immaculate Conception and Carol Windlet for Home Schooling.