Vancouver author Sandra Djwa makes longlist for 2013 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction

Fifteen books have been longlisted for the 2013 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction. Two of the books are from B.C. authors.

Sandra Djwa of Vancouver wrote Journey with No Maps: A Life of P.K. Page, which was published by McGill-Queen's University Press. Djwa, a professor emeritus of English at Simon Fraser University, previously authored The Politics of the Imagination: A Life of F.R. Scott and Professing English: A Life of Roy Daniells.

March Forth: The Inspiring True Story of a Canadian Soldier's Journey of Love, Hope and Survival, written by Nanaimo's Trevor and Debbie Greene and published by HarperCollins Publishers, also made the longlist for the prestigious award.

Jurors Susanne Boyce, Richard Gwyn, and Joseph Kertes started with 129 books authored by Canadians and published between October 22, 2011, and October 21, 2012. The shortlist will be announced on January 9, 2013, and the winner will be revealed on March 4, 2013.

Here's the full longlist for the 2013 Charles Taylor Prize:

1.The Pursuit of Perfection: A Life of Celia Franca by Carol Bishop-Gwyn (Toronto), published by Cormorant Books

2.Warlords: Borden, Mackenzie King, and Canada's World Wars by Tim Cook (Ottawa), published by Allen Lane

3.Walls: Travels Along the Barricades by Marcello Di Cintio (Calgary), published by Goose Lane Editions

4.Journey with No Maps: A Life of P.K. Page by Sandra Djwa (Vancouver), published by McGill-Queen's University Press

5.Solar Dance: Genius, Forgery, and the Crisis of Truth in the Modern Age by Modris Ecksteins (Toronto), published by Alfred A. Knopf Canada

6.A Season in Hell: My 130 Days in the Sahara With Al Qaeda by Robert Fowler (Ottawa), published by HarperCollins Publishers

7.Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else by Chrystia Freeland (New York City), published by Doubleday Canada

8.March Forth: The Inspiring True Story of a Canadian Soldier's Journey of Love, Hope and Survival by Trevor and Debbie Greene (Nanaimo), published by HarperCollins Publishers

9.Leonardo and The Last Supper by Ross King (Oxford), published by Bond Street Books

10.Working the Dead Beat: 50 Lives That Changed Canada by Sandra Martin (Toronto), published by House of Anansi Press

11.Sword of the Spirit, Shield of Faith: Religion in American War and Diplomacy by Andrew Preston (Cambridge), published by Alfred A. Knopf Canada

12.What We Talk About When We Talk About War by Noah Richler (Toronto), published by Goose Lane Editions

13.Chronic Condition: Why Canada's Health-Care System Needs to be Dragged Into the 21st Century by Jeffrey Simpson (Ottawa), published by Allen Lane

14.Epistolophilia: Writing the Life of Ona Šimaithe by Julija Šukys (Montreal), published by University of Nebraska Press

15.The Universe Within: From Quantum to Cosmos by Neil Turok (Waterloo), published by House of Anansi Press

According to the prize's website, "The prize will be awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety of thought and perception." The winner gets $25,000, the other finalists net $2,000 each, and all shortlisted titles gain promotional support.

Toronto’s Andrew Westoll won the 2012 Charles Taylor Prize for The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary: A Canadian Story of Resilience and Recovery.

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