“Mordecai Richler bio wins non-fiction prize - CBC Olympics” plus 1 more

Mordecai Richler bio wins non-fiction prize - CBC Olympics

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Charles Foran's biography of Mordecai Richler, seen in 1983, has won the Charles Taylor Prize for literary non-fiction. (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)

Mordecai: The Life and Times, Charles Foran's engaging biography of Mordecai Richler, has won the $25,000 Charles Taylor Prize for literary non-fiction.

Foran triumphed on Monday at a luncheon gala in Toronto.

The 700-page biography of the provocative and beloved Richler "meets the immense challenge of writing about one of Canada's most talented and controversial authors," the three-member jury panel, comprising literature professor Eva-Marie Kroller and writers David Macfarlane and Neil Bissoondath, said in a citation.

"Charles Foran has created a rich and compelling portrait of the man and his times."

Kroller, Macfarlane and Bissoondath, who served as the inaugural Charles Taylor Prize jury in 2000, reunited to judge this year's competition.

Charles Foran talks to Radio-Canada's Kevin Sweet about his Charles Taylor Prize-winning novel, Mordecai.

Accepting the prize on Monday, Foran told an audience of organizers, fellow authors, publishing industry representatives and media that his intention was to write a book "filled with Mordecai Richler's character, with his life, with the characters in his books and in his personal life."

For the final product, he expressed his gratitude to Richler's widow, Florence, who "made this book not once, not twice, but three times as good as it would have been otherwise."

The Peterborough, Ont.-based novelist, journalist and former Montreal resident also toasted his subject.

"People have been too kind to state the obvious for the last four and a half years, and that is I have been standing on the shoulder of a giant in writing this book," he said.

"I hope you'll join me in raising a glass to the memory of Mordecai Richler: a great Canadian writer and a great Canadian."

The 700-page book is 'a rich and compelling portrait of the man and his times,' the jury said in a citation. (Random House of Canada)

Richler revival

Mordecai emerged in October 2010 amid revived interest in recent years in the famed author of The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz and Barney's Version.

Richler, who died in 2001 at age 70, has a prized place in the Canadian literary canon, but Foran is the second writer to tackle a biography of late. In 2009, M.G. Vassanji published a book-length examination of Richler for Penguin Canada's Extraordinary Canadians series.

Canadian movie mogul Robert Lantos also saw his long-held dream of releasing a film adaptation of Richler's final novel, Barney's Version, realized in 2010. The prominent producer had toiled on the project for more than 12 years.

On Monday, Foran's book overcame strong competition from four other finalists:

On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the Tragic Story of Vancouver's Missing Women by Stevie Cameron.
Defiant Spirits: The Modernist Revolution of the Group of Seven by Ross King.
The Geography of Arrival by George Sipos.
The Love Queen of Malabar: Memoir of a Friendship with Kamala Das by Merrily Weisbord.

Foran joins past Charles Taylor winners such as Carol Shields, J.B. MacKinnon and Ian Brown.

Established in memory of writer and former Globe and Mail correspondent Charles Taylor, the annual prize celebrates the Canadian author of a book that "demonstrates a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style and a subtlety of thought and perception."

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Group seeks entries in diversity writing contest - Stamford Advocate

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How do Greenwich students define diversity?

That is the question the town Affirmative Action Advisory Committee is looking to answer with its second annual "Defining Diversity Writing Contest."

High school students are asked to submit a short fiction or nonfiction piece that answers, in 1,000 words or less, "What does diversity mean to you?"

The contest is open to any high school student enrolled in a Greenwich school or who lives in town and attends school elsewhere.

One responsibility of the Affirmative Action Advisory Committee is to reach out to the community and make residents more aware of diversity issues, said Alma Rutgers, the committee's chairwoman.

"It was quite successful last year," Rutgers said.

Last year's first place winner, Greenwich High School junior Erica Meehan, wrote a poem about the many religions, political affiliations, social cliques and sexual orientations within the GHS student body, while the third place winner, Greenwich Academy junior Giulia Caterin, wrote a personal essay about classmates who teased her about her thick Italian accent.

Submissions will be judged on style, originality, clarity and adherence to the theme of diversity.

All entries must be submitted by 5 p.m. on April 8, and finalists will be notified by e-mail May 6. All finalists will have their entries published in Greenwich Time, which is co-sponsoring the contest. The committee will award first- through third-place prizes, along with three honorable mentions.

Entries should be e-mailed to diversitycontest@greenwichct.org. The student's name, school, grade level, telephone number, e-mail and home addresses should be included in the body of the e-mail. Questions about the contest can be directed to the same e-mail address.

Staff writer Lisa Chamoff can be reached at lisa.chamoff@scni.com or 203-625-4439.

Non-Fiction

Wednesday, February 23, 2011