Three finalists announced for lucrative Cundill Prize for historical non-fiction

TORONTO – An award-winning American historian is among the three finalists for the lucrative Cundill Prize being awarded in Toronto next week.

Thomas W. Laqueur, a professor of history at the University of California, Berkeley, is in contention for “The Work of the Dead: A Cultural History of Mortal Remains” (Princeton University Press).

David Wootton, anniversary professor of history at the U.K.’s University of York, was honoured for “The Invention of Science: A New History of the Scientific Revolution,” published by HarperCollins.

British historian Andrea Wulf was recognized for “The Invention of Nature: Alexander Von Humboldt’s New World” (Alfred A. Knopf, John Murray Publishers).

Now in its ninth year, the Cundill Prize is billed as the most lucrative award in historical non-fiction, with a grand prize of US$75,000 and two recognition of excellence prizes of US$10,000 apiece.

The prize is awarded each year to an individual who has published a book that has made a profound literary, social, and academic impact in the area of history.

It was established in 2008 by McGill University alumnus F. Peter Cundill, who died in January 2011, and is administered by McGill’s dean of arts, with assistance from the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada.

The winner will be announced at an awards gala at the Shangri-La Hotel on Nov. 17.