5 books make the RBC Taylor Prize shortlist

The RBC Taylor Prize, an annual award that honours the best in Canadian nonfiction with a $25,000 prize, has announced its 2017 shortlist.

The five finalists are:

• Pumpkinflowers: A Soldier's Story of a Forgotten Warby Matti Friedman
• Marconi: The Man Who Networked the Worldby Marc Raboy
• This Is Not My Life: A Memoir of Love, Prison, and Other Complicationsby Diane Schoemperlen
• By Chance Alone: A Remarkable True Story of Courage and Survival at Auschwitzby Max Eisen
• Mad Enchantment: Claude Monet and the Painting of the Water Liliesby Ross King

This marks a second major award nomination for Friedman, Raboy and King. BothPumpkinflowersandMad Enchantmentwere nominated for the 2016 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction. Meanwhile, Raboy'sMarconiwas a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award for non-fiction.

The winner of the 2017 RBC Taylor Prize will be announced on March 6, 2017. This year's jury panel consists ofhistorian John English, journalist Ann MacMillan and novelist Colin McAdam.

The winner of the2016 RBC Taylor Prizewas Rosemary Sullivan for her biographyStalin's Daughter.