The Finder

The world is filled with wonders, lost objectsall realall still out there, waiting to be found:

• the missing Faberg eggs of the Romanov dynasty, worth millions
• the last reel of Alfred Hitchcock's first film
• Buddy Holly's iconic glasses
• Muhammad Ali's Olympic gold medal

How can such cherished objects simply vanish? Where are they hiding? And who on earth might be compelled to uncover them?

Will Ferguson takes readers on a heroic, imaginative journey across continents, from the seas of southern Japan, to the arid Australian Outback, to the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, after the earthquake. Prepare to meet Gaddy Rhodes, a brittle Interpol agent obsessed with tracking "The Finder"a shadowy figure she believes is collecting lost objects; Thomas Rafferty, a burnt-out travel writer whose path crosses that of The Finder, to devastating effect; and Tamsin Greene, a swaggering war photographer who is hiding secrets of her own.(FromSimon & SchusterCanada)

Will Fergusonhaswritten humour, travel books andfiction. He won the 2012 ScotiabankGiller Prize for his thriller419. He has won the Stephen LeacockMemorial Medal for Humour three times:for his novelGenerica(now titledHappiness), his Canadian travel bookBeauty Tips from Moose Jawand his travel memoirBeyond Belfast. He currently lives in Calgary.

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Why Will Ferguson wrote The Finder

"I wanted the objects that are in the novel to be real objects. There are enough real objects that are lost out there. For example, Muhammad Ali's gold medal from the Olympics.He got the gold medal as Cassius Clay, came back very proud, was wearing his medal into St. Louis and he was refused service because it was segregated. He was so disgusted. He threw his medal into the Ohio River. It sank into the mud and it sits there to this day.

What if someone actually went out and found these real objects objects that are valuable because they were lost?- Will Ferguson

"Same with the stolen Stradivarius violins that are listed,the Faberge eggs of the Romanov dynasty,Buddy Holly's glasses retrieved from the plane crash that killed him all these objects are out there. I thought, 'What if someone actually went out and found these real objects objects that are valuable because they were lost?'

"I like the idea of the world as a treasure hunt. But I wanted them to be real objects grounded in a real place, in real time."

Read more in his interview with The Next Chapter.

Interviews with Will Ferguson

Will Ferguson's Giller triumph

12 years ago

Duration 1:32

Calgary humourist Will Ferguson's foray into dramatic writing for his novel 419 has been rewarded with the 2012 Giller Prize, in a year when a handful of lesser known Canadian writers dominated the contenders. Deana Sumanac reports.

The Next Chapter6:28Will Ferguson takes the Proust Questionnaire

The author of "Road Trip Rwanda" and the Giller Prize-winning "419" reveals his greatest fear, his idea of perfect happiness, and more.

Books by Will Ferguson