Mamaskatch: A Cree Coming of Age by Darrel J. McLeod (Douglas & McIntyre) has been longlisted for the 18th annual RBC Taylor Prize, announced on December 5, 2018. Mamaskatch won the 2018 Governor General’s Literary Award for Non-fiction in English.
The Taylor Prize jury—Camilla Gibb, Roy MacGregor, and Beverley McLachlin —said Mamaskatch was “a torturously-beautiful memoir of growing up in a world of violence and family trauma. McLeod’s writing is lyrical and offers a powerful examination of contemporary issues, from sexual self-identification to the scars of residential school to the contemporary search for reconciliation. “Mamaskatch” means “shared dream” in Cree, and while there are unavoidable nightmares along the journey, there are also dreams of hope, at times of exquisite beauty and renewed pride.”
The RBC Taylor Prize, named for Charles Taylor, is awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety of thought and perception. The winner receives $25,000 and will select their choice for the RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award. The shortlisted titles all receive $2,000 each, and the Emerging Writer receives $10,000 and the opportunity to be mentored by the winner.
The shortlist will be revealed on January 9, 2019, and the winner will be announced on March 4, 2019 at an award ceremony in Toronto.