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Charles Montgomery wins 2005 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction
Published: Fri, 4 Mar 2005, 12:03 EDT
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By Christopher L. Simmons
Staff Writer, Publishers Newswire
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TORONTO, Canada -- The Winner of The 2005 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction is Charles Montgomery (Vancouver) for his book, "The Last Heathen: Encounters with Ghosts and Ancestors in Melanesia," published by Douglas & McIntyre. The prize of $25,000.00 was awarded at a luncheon at the Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto. For the third consecutive year, the event was broadcast live on CBC Radio One's "Ontario Today" with host Alan Neal.
The Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction was founded to commemorate the life and work of the late Charles Taylor, one of Canada's foremost essayists and a prominent member of the Canadian literary community.
In 1892, the Bishop of Tasmania set sail for Melanesia with the intent of rescuing islanders from lives of fear, black magic, and cannibalism. Over 100 years later, Charles Montgomery, the bishop's great grandson, follows his route through the South Pacific, seeking out the spirits and myths his missionary forebear had sought to destroy.
Of the book, the jury said: "Charles Montgomery's The Last Heathen -- part travel book, part family history -- engages with the religious fervour of missionaries, mystics, gods, and believers in Melanesia. What begins as a retracing of his great grandfather's footsteps becomes an irresistible adventure in discovery, a journey into rough terrain."
Charles Montgomery is a freelance journalist whose themes include travel, the environment, globalization, and myth. His essays and feature stories have appeared in Outside, Explore, Canadian Geographic, Western Living, enRoute, The National Post, Seattle Magazine, The South China Morning Post, and other magazines and newspapers in Canada, the United States, and Hong Kong. He has won four Western Magazine Awards, a silver National Magazine Award (2003) and the American Society of Travel Writer's Lowell Thomas Silver Award.
The jurors for The 2005 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction are Robert Kroetsch (Winnipeg), Bill New (Vancouver), and Jan Walter (Kingston). They selected "The Last Heathen: Encounters with Ghosts and Ancestors in Melanesia" from among 96 books, submitted by 28 publishers, from all across Canada. Books in the genre of literary non-fiction, published between December 1, 2003 and November 30, 2004, were eligible if authored by a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant, and widely available in Canada.
The trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation are Michael Bradley (Toronto), Robert Bringhurst (Vancouver), Judith Mappin (Montreal), David Staines (Ottawa), and Noreen Taylor (Toronto).
For Further Information On The Winner Of The 2004 Charles Taylor Prize For Literary Non-Fiction visit: www.thecharlestaylorprize.ca
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