So Misguided has been awfully light on the book reviews this year. That’s because I have been quietly slaving away as a juror of the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award, part of the Manitoba Literary Awards. See the Manitoba Literary Awards announcement of winners.
The purpose of the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award is to honour books that evoke the special character of Winnipeg and contribute to the appreciation and understanding of the City.
The Award is administered by the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers on behalf of the Winnipeg Arts Council, and carries a cash prize of $5,000 for the author of the winning book.
Congratulations to the 5 finalists, whose books I very much enjoyed. And to winner of the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award, Roland Penner.
Quote: Winner: A Glowing Dream: A Memoir by Roland Penner, published by J. Gordon Shillingford Publishing.
Other finalists for the Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award:
* Influenza 1918: Disease, Death and Struggle in Winnipeg by Esyllt W. Jones, published by University of Toronto Press
* Holding My Breath by Sidura Ludwig, published by Key Porter Books
* The North End: Photographs by John Paskievich, introduction by Stephen Osborne, published by University of Manitoba Press
* The Winnipeg Jets: A Celebration of Professional Hockey in Winnipeg by Scott Taylor, published by Studio Publications.
A Glowing Dream: A Memoir by Roland Penner is a fascinating personal history of the Penner family in Winnipeg as well as a social and political history of Winnipeg, one which is not widely known. Roland’s father Jacob was a social and political activist who arrived in Winnipeg in 1904 from Southern Russia. Jacob Penner was one of the founders of the Communist Party of Canada in 1921 and later a Winnipeg City Councillor for 25 years. Roland become a litigation lawyer and academic. He grew up Red but left the Party and later became the Attorney General. The Penner family was an active part of political life in Manitoba for many, many years.
You can see more reviews of Winnipeg and Manitoba books here.