Russell Wangersky, managing editor of The Telegram, has been awarded the country's richest prize for non-fiction. Wangersky won the $40,000 B.C. National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction for his latest book, "Burning Down the House: Fighting Fires and Losing Myself". He was presented with the prize just hours ago, at a ceremony in Vancouver.
Here is an excerpt of the online story from The Quill and Quire, by Cheri Hanson. (A subscription is required to access the full article.)
This year's jury included Toronto Star publisher John Cruickshank, author and media host Andreas Schroeder, and journalist Stevie Cameron. Jury chair Cruickshank said the trio struggled to cut 163 entries down to a longlist of 14 and to choose the winner from four "remarkable books." The jury also debated the nature of the prize, but ultimately decided that dazzling writing should take the spotlight. "This is a literary award," said Cruickshank, who called Wangersky's book "a story extraordinarily well told."
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