Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction – Shortlist Announced

With so many book award announcement these days, it can be easy to miss some of the “big ones”. For me the big awards are The Scotiabank Giller Prize, The Governor General Literary Awards, The Man Booker Prize and The Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction.

Over the years, I have certainly gotten some great reading suggestions from the Charles Taylor Prize shortlists, such as Baltimore’s Mansion by Wayne Johnson and The Curse of the Narrows by Laura M. MacDonald.

This year’s shortlist has just been announced. The winner is to be crowned on Feb. 14th.

Here is a description of the prize as well as the shortlisted titles for 2011:

“2011 marks the tenth awarding of the prestigious prize, which recognizes excellence in literary non-fiction. This national book award was established in 1998 to commemorate the life and work of one of Canada’s foremost literary non-fiction writers, the late Charles Taylor.

First presented as a biennial award in 2000, and made annual in 2004, the Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction is presented to a Canadian author whose book best demonstrates a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style and a subtlety of thought and perception.”

The Geography of Arrival: a memoir,
by George Sipos

The Love Queen of Malabar: memoir of a friendship with Kamala Das,
by Merrily Weisbord;

Mordecai: the life & times,
by Charles Foran

Defiant Spirits: the modernist revolution of the Group of Seven,
by Ross King

On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the tragic story of the missing Vancouver women,
by Stevie Cameron