Cundill Prize short list announced

Today, the jury for the Cundill Prize in Historical Literature, the world’s most lucrative award for historical non-fiction writing, announced this year's short list. The winning author, to be announced on Nov. 17, will take home $75,000 (US).
The winning book for the Cundill Prize in Historical Literature will be announced on Nov. 17. / Photo: Laurie Devine.
The winning book for the Cundill Prize in Historical Literature will be announced on Nov. 17. / Photo: Laurie Devine.

Three books to compete for $75,000 (US) grand prize

Today, the jury for the 2016 Cundill Prize in Historical Literature, the world’s most lucrative award for historical non-fiction writing, announced this year’s short list. Antonia Maioni, Dean of McGill’s Faculty of Arts and Chair of the Cundill Prize , said, “With this year’s finalists for the Cundill Prize in History, the jury has identified three books that combine tremendous erudition, insight and élan. These are books that engage and hold their readers’ attention from the first page to the last.” Now in its ninth year, the Cundill Prize features a grand prize of $75,000 (US) and two Recognition of Excellence prizes of $10,000 (US) each.

The three finalists are:

The winner of the grand prize will be announced at a gala awards ceremony in Toronto on Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Shangri-La Hotel.

This year’s short list was chosen by the Cundill jury, which included Timothy Brook, Republic of China Chair, University of British Columbia; John Darwin, Professor of Global and Imperial History and Director, Oxford Centre for Global History, University of Oxford; and Anna Porter, Co-founder, Key Porter Books and author (Buying a Better World: George Soros and Billionaire Philanthropy, The Ghosts of Europe).

About the Prize: The Cundill Prize in Historical Literature is the world’s most important international prize for non-fiction historical literature. It was established in 2008 by McGill alumnus F. Peter Cundill, who passed away in January 2011. The prize is administered by McGill’s Dean of Arts, with assistance from the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada (MISC), and is awarded annually to an individual who has published a book that has made a profound literary, social, and academic impact in the area of history.