Canadian charitable organization CODE has announced the finalists for the second annual Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature. A jury of Canadian authors, administered by the Canada Council of the Arts, selected the shortlisted titles.

The finalists are:

• The Girl Who Grew A Galaxy by Cherie Dimaline (Theytus Books)
• The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America by Thomas King (Doubleday Canada)
• They Called Me Number One by Bev Sellars (Talonbooks)
• Tilly, a Story of Hope and Resilience by Monique Gray Smith (Sono Nis Press)

More than 7,500 copies of last year’s winning books – Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, As I Remember It by Tara Lee Morin, and As Long as the Rivers Flow by James Bartleman – were distributed to aboriginal youth across Canada via more than 980 schools, community centres, friendship centres, and libraries.

“We’re excited to continue the work we started in the inaugural year of the Award to spread the joy of reading across the country with the excellent and engaging books for young people in this year’s shortlist,” said CODE executive director Scott Walter in a press release announcing the shortlist.

The winners will be announced Sept. 27 at a gala dinner hosted by Shelagh Rogers and Wab Kinew at the Manitoba Theatre for Young People in Winnipeg. The winner will receive $12,000, while second– and third– place authors will receive $8,000 and $5,000 respectively. In addition, publishers of the winning titles will be guaranteed an order of 2,500 copies per book, which will be distributed to young readers across Canada.