Joe Fiorito

Joe Fiorito is a Canadian journalist and novelist, currently a columnist for the Toronto Star.^[1] He is the author of one novel, The Song Beneath the Ice (2003).

He has also published four non-fiction books:

• Comfort Me with Apples (Nuage / Signature Editions, 1994; updated McClelland & Stewart, 2000) - a memoir-cum-recipe book.
• Tango on the Main (Nuage / Signature Editions, 1996) - collection of essays that originally appeared in the Montreal Gazette between 1994–5.
• The Closer We Are to Dying (McClelland & Stewart, 1999) - a family memoir, which became an international bestseller.^[2]
• Union Station: Love, Madness, Sex and Survival on the Streets of New Toronto (McClelland & Stewart, 2006) - a tribute to his home city, Toronto.

Career

Fiorito was born in Fort William, Ontario.^[3]

Before becoming a columnist he worked in a paper mill, surveyed roads, laboured in bush camps, worked in community development and served as a regional consultant for the Ontario Arts Council.^[4]

He then worked a staff of Inuit journalists at CBC Radio in Iqaluit for five years. Following this he wrote, produced and directed CBC Radio's weekly program The Food Show.

He has previously written columns for the Montreal Gazette, the National Post and The Globe and Mail^[5] and reviews for the Literary Review of Canada.^[6]

Awards

• 1996 - National Newspaper Award for Tango on the Main columns
• 2003 - Toronto Book Award for The Song Beneath the Ice

References