Russell Wangersky Wins Canada's Largest Non-Fiction Award

One of Canada's largest literary prizes – the BC Award for Canadian Non-Fiction was awarded to Russell Wangersky for his insightful and harrowing depiction of modern-day fire-fighting, Burning Down the House: Fighting Fires and Losing Myself (Thomas Allen Publishers).


CBC Radio One's Sheryl MacKay interviews 2009 BC Award winner Russell Wangersky for North by Northwest (originally aired February 8, 2009) (mp3, 5.8MB)




Russell Wangersky shown with Deputy Premier, Hon. Shirley Bond.

Deputy Premier, Hon. Shirley Bond. presented Russell Wangersky with the $40,000 prize in Vancouver at a ceremony that also celebrated the three other finalists for the award, Daphne Bramham for The Secret Lives of Saints: Child Brides and Lost Boys in Canada's Polygamous Mormon Sect (Random House Canada), Mary Henley Rubio for Lucy Maud Montgomery: the Gift of Wings (Doubleday Canada) and Christopher Shulgan for The Soviet Ambassador: The Making of the Radical Behind Perestroika (McClelland & Stewart).



The 2009 jury panel (Andreas Schroeder, John Cruickshank (chair) and Stevie Cameron).



Finalist Daphne Bramham with Deputy Premier, Hon. Shirley Bond and Foundation Chair, Keith Mitchell.



Finalist Mary Henley Rubio with Deputy Premier, Hon. Shirley Bond and Foundation Chair, Keith Mitchell.



Finalist Christopher Shulgan with Deputy Premier, Hon. Shirley Bond and Foundation Chair, Keith Mitchell.