Biography

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Reviews / Blurbs from Trust the Bluer Skies:

“Some art is designed to describe the world, other art to change it. Trust the Bluer Skies is of the second kind, which means paulo da costa has taken on the task of writing the world accurately for what it is, and persuasively about what it isn’t – and needs to be. The book is an urgent challenge to the dynamics of a society that under the sway of the male-centred social patterns suppress the non-masculine in the world, but oddly, do their work, in part, by separating men from one another, particularly the men who should be the closest. Fathers and sons.” 2024 Calgary Outstanding Artist Award

“A haunting memoir about the perils and promise of returning home and the joy of leaving it forever changed.”—Foreword Reviews

“Serves as a contemplative accounting of the ones we hold dear and the invisible threads that connect past and future.”—Literary Review of Canada

“One man’s work to change the meaning of father—for himself, his son, and us.” —Richard Harrison, author ofOn Not Losing My Father’s Ashes in the Flood

“A luminous meditation on Portugal, family, childhood, and time: both evocative and wise.” —Mark Abley, author ofStrange Bewildering Time

“Trust the Bluer Skiesis a transcendentally, stunning meditation on parenthood, community, and place. Crackling with wisdom and honesty, da costa reminds us that better is possible if we’re only willing to imagine, if we’re only willing to try. Deeply observed, evocative, brave and full of promise. Memoir at its best.” —Ali Bryan, author ofCoq

Reviews / Blurbs from The Scent of a Lie:

Costa’s spare and poetic tales of ordinary people facing the trials and joys of everyday life reveal a deep love of his craft. – John Terauds, Toronto Star

The Scent Of A Lie, (…) marks the debut of a remarkable writer. – Toronto Star

With this book of linked stories, Paulo Da Costa adds piquant new spice to the CanLit broth.The Globe and Mail

Paying homage to a fabulist tradition running from Marquez and Borges and Carlos Fuentes all the way back to Cervantes, Da Costa evokes his God-beset, earthbound peasants, priests and villagers with palpable, redolent precision.Jim Bartley, The Globe and Mail

The Scent of a Lie is an auspicious debut and feels like the work of a seasoned writer. Tim McNamara, Edmonton Journal

The reader can see just how well da Costa writes: the language here is lyrical and flowing, and the imaginativeness of the stories speaks for itself. Da costa is clearly a writer to watch. Edmonton Journal

The most uniformly fresh, sprightly, meaty work of Canadian fiction I’ve read in a long time. Vue weekly, Print Culture – Christopher Wiebe  

Da Costa builds his fictional world with infinite patience and skill. Every line, every word takes the reader directly into the lives and homes of the extraordinary people of these villages. W.O. Mitchell Prize Jury

Award Recipient – Remarks

2024 James H. Gray Award for Short Nonfiction

Jury Remarks: paulo da costa’s “The Stones That Anchor Us” is a touching homecoming tale that is original in structure and rich in description. Unconventionally, it takes the form of a kind of letter to the writer’s son and daughter (addressed as “you”), reminding them of their past visits, of local customs and time-honoured traditions. “The Stones That Anchor Us” is a heartwarming homage to tradition, to the cultural anchors that moor us to home and define who we become. Paulo da Costa’s skill in conveying this in the context of a fecund valley in Portugal make his tale an award winner.

2023 James H. Gray Award for Short Nonfiction

Jury Remarks: “Enclosures” is a skilful study of the environment and the self as both manipulated and restricted by complex cultural expectations and the background of a fascist government. The elegant prose and moving scenes frame a beautiful story of struggling with the idea of freedom for humans and animals alike. The second-person narrative was an effective and touching way for Da Costa to expound his feelings about raising and eating animals all while dancing between history and tradition, childhood and adulthood, revolution and freedom.

2020 James H. Gray Award for Short Nonfiction

Jury remarks: This poetic essay explores the richness of a father/son relationship in language that is tender, emotionally vibrant, and physically sensual. A lyric antidote to toxic masculinity, this beautifully crafted and fully realized essay results in something much larger than a simple combination of its carefully worded parts. It’s a lovely examination of fatherhood, and what is passed down through generations, and how different generations express love.

2002 W.O. Mitchell City of Calgary Book Prize

Jury remarks: Da Costa builds his fictional world with infinite patience and skill. Every line, every word takes the reader directly into the lives and homes of the extraordinary people of these villages.

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paulo da costa lives in Mohkinstsis / Calgary which is located on the lands of the Treaty 7 People:

The Blackfoot from Siksika, Kainai and Piikani Nations.
The Dene-Sarceee from Tsuut’ina Nation.
And the Îethka Stoney-Nakoda Nation that includes the Morley, the Bearspaw, Chiniki and Good Stoney Bands.

He also walks in the footsteps of the Northwest Métis and the Otipemisiwak Métis Government, Métis Nation Battle River Territory, Nose Hill Métis District 5 and Elbow Métis District 6 of Alberta.