Join us as acclaimed Newfoundland author Wayne Johnston launches his latest novel, The Novice of Holloway Hall, at the opening event of the 2026–27 Lorenzo Society Reading Series.
Aug. 18 at 7 p.m.
Hans W. Klohn Commons, Saint John campus
Wayne will read from his dark and hilarious new work, and chat with Lorenzo Society coordinator Gemma Marr about the genesis for the novel, his writing process, how he weaves real life into fiction, and more!
Wayne Johnston was born and raised in Goulds, Newfoundland. His #1 nationally bestselling novels include First Snow, Last Light; The Custodian of Paradise; The Navigator of New York; and The Colony of Unrequited Dreams. Baltimore's Mansion, a memoir about his father and grandfather, won the inaugural Charles Taylor Prize for literary non-fiction.
The Colony of Unrequited Dreams, published in 1998, was nominated for sixteen national and international awards including the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction, and was a Canada Reads finalist defended by Justin Trudeau. In 2011,
Johnston was awarded the Writers’ Trust Engel/Findley Award honouring the work of a writer in mid-career. In 2023, his memoir Jennie’s Boy won The Stephen Leacock Gold Medal for Humour and was also a Canada Reads finalist, in 2025.
Learn more about Wayne’s latest novel
Books will be available for purchase from the UNBSJ Campus Bookstore and light refreshments will be provided.
At the end of the evening, more information about Reading Series events happening in the fall will be shared!
As always: this event is free and all are welcome!
