Evelyn Richardson Award
The Evelyn Richardson Memorial Non-Fiction Award is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the Atlantic Book Awards & Festival, to the best work of adult non-fiction published in the previous year by a writer from Atlantic Canada. It is the oldest literary award in the region and is considered the most prestigious for a work of non-fiction. The award was named to honour Evelyn M. Richardson.
Winners
- 1978 – Harry Bruce, Lifeline: the Story of the Atlantic Ferries and Coastal Boats
- 1979 – Alden Nowlan, Double Exposure
- 1980 – Joan Payzant and L.J. Payzant, Like a Weaver's Shuttle: a history of the Halifax-Dartmouth ferries
- 1981 – Kay Hill, Joe Howe: the Man who was Nova Scotia
- 1982 – Bruce Armstrong, Sable Island
- 1983 – J. Murray Beck, Joseph Howe: Volume 1, Conservative Reformer, 1804-1848
- 1984 – Brian C. Cuthbertson, The Loyalist Governor: Biography of Sir John Wentworth
- 1985 – Lilias M. Toward, Mabel Bell: Alexander's Silent Partner
- 1986 – P. B. Waite, The Man from Halifax: Sir John Thompson, Prime Minister
- 1987 – Tony Foster, Meeting of Generals
- 1988 – Harold Horwood, Dancing on the Shore: a Celebration of Life at Annapolis Basin
- 1989 – Dean Jobb, Shades of Justice: Seven Nova Scotia Murder Cases
- 1990 – Judith Fingard, Dark Side of Life in Victorian Halifax
- 1991 – Harry Thurston, Tidal Life: a natural history of the Bay of Fundy
- 1992 – Robert Pope, Illness and Healing: Images of Cancer
- 1993 – Sally Ross and J. Alphonse Deveau, The Acadians of Nova Scotia: Past and Present
- 1994 – Peter Brock, Variations on a Planet
- 1995 – Elizabeth Pacey, Landmarks: Historic Buildings of Nova Scotia
- 1996 – Simone Poirier-Bures, That Shining Place
- 1997 – Harry Thurston, The Nature of Shorebirds: Nomads of the Wetlands
- 1998 – Harry Bruce, An Illustrated History of Nova Scotia
- 1999 – Silver Donald Cameron, The Living Beach
- 2000 – Robin Metcalfe, Studio Rally
- 2001 – Joan Baxter, A Serious Pair of Shoes: An African Journal
- 2002 – Kent Thompson, Getting Out of Town by Book and Bike
- 2003 – Stephen Kimber, Sailors, Slackers and Blind Pigs: Halifax at War
- 2004 – Harry Thurston, Island of the Blessed: the Secrets of Egypt's Everlasting Oasis
- 2005 – Marq de Villiers and Sheila Hirtle, A Dune Adrift
- 2006 – Linda Johns, Birds of a Feather: Tales of a Wild Bird Haven
- 2007 – Linden MacIntyre, Causeway: A Passage from Innocence
- 2008 – Marq de Villiers, The Witch in the Wind: The True Story of the Legendary Bluenose
- 2009 – William D. Naftel, Halifax at War: Searchlights, Squadrons, and Submarines 1939-1945[1]
- 2010 – John DeMont, Coal Black Heart: The Story of Coal and the Lives it Ruled
- 2011 – Laura Penny, More Money Than Brains: Why Schools Suck, College is Crap, and Idiots Think They're Right
- 2012 – Harry Thurston, The Atlantic Coast: A Natural History
- 2013 – Steven Laffoley, Shadowboxing: The Rise and Fall of George Dixon
- 2014 – Stephen Kimber, What Lies Across the Water[2]
- 2015 – Kaleigh Trace, Hot, Wet, & Shaking: How I Learned to Talk About Sex[3]
- 2016 – Gary Saunders, My Life With Trees
- 2017 – Erin Wunker, Notes from A Feminist Killjoy
- 2018 – John DeMont, The Long Way Home: A Personal History of Nova Scotia[4]
- 2019 – Kate Inglis, Notes for the Everlost: A Field Guide to Grief[5]
- 2020 – Ami McKay, Daughter of Family G: A Memoir of Cancer Genes, Love and Fate[6]
- 2021 – Tyler LeBlanc, Acadian Driftwood: One Family and the Great Expulsion[7]
- 2022 – Stephen Kimber, Alexa!: Changing the Face of Canadian Politics[8]
- 2023 – El Jones, Abolitionist Intimacies[9]
- 2024 – Karen Pinchin, Kings of Their Own Ocean: Tuna, Obsession, and the Future of Our Seas[10][11]
- 2025 – Andrea Currie, Finding Otipemisiwak: The People Who Own Themselves[12]
References
- ^ "Halifax at War takes two Atlantic Book Awards". CBC News. Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 16 April 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ "Kowalski, Kimber, Domanski take home East Coast Literary Awards". Quill & Quire, September 21, 2014.
- ^ Robertson, Becky (8 June 2015). "2015 East Coast Literary Awards winners announced". Quill & Quire. Toronto, ON: St. Joseph Media. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ Tara Thorne, "Your 2018 Atlantic Book Award winners". The Coast, May 11, 2018.
- ^ Ryan Porter, "Lisa Moore wins $25,000 fiction award at Atlantic Book Awards". Quill & Quire, June 10, 2019.
- ^ Sue Carter, "Ami McKay, Gemma Hickey double winners at Atlantic Book Awards". Quill & Quire, July 2, 2020.
- ^ Zhu, Eva (17 May 2021). "Tyler LeBlanc, Alison Taylor among 2021 Atlantic Book Award winners". CBC Books. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ Cassandra Drudi, "2022 Atlantic Book Awards winners announced". Quill & Quire, June 9, 2022.
- ^ Attila Berki, "Nova Scotia Book Awards 2023 winners announced". Quill & Quire, June 8, 2023.
- ^ Cassandra Drudi, "Amanda Peters, Karen Pinchin among 2024 Nova Scotia Book Awards winners". Quill & Quire, June 5, 2024.
- ^ "Amanda Peters, Michelle Porter and Jack Wong among winners of 2024 Nova Scotia and Atlantic Book Awards". CBC News. Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 11 June 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ MacDonald, April (June 3, 2025). "Currie earns Evelyn Richardson Non-Fiction Award for Finding Otipemisiwak". The Inverness Oran. Retrieved 6 October 2025.