City of Vancouver Book Award
The City of Vancouver Book Award is a Canadian literary award, that has been presented annually by the city of Vancouver, British Columbia to one or more works of literature judged as the year's best fiction, non-fiction, poetry or drama work about the city.
As with the City of Toronto Book Award, the award may go to one or more books.
The award has a monetary value of $3,000. The prize is funded by interest earned from the city’s publishing reserve, which was established in 1977 as a permanent legacy for writers and publishers. The fund received royalties generated from Vancouver’s First Century: a photo history of Vancouver, edited by city staff. The third edition of the book, renamed Vancouver: A City Album, for many years generated royalty payments for the fund.
Winners
- 1989 - Paul Yee, Saltwater City
- 1990 - Sky Lee, Disappearing Moon Café
- 1991 - Michael Kluckner, Vanishing Vancouver
- 1992 - Gerald Straley, Trees of Vancouver
- 1993 - Bruce Macdonald, Vancouver: A Visual History
- 1994 - Denise Chong, The Concubine's Children
- 1995 - Elspeth Cameron, Earle Birney: A Life
- 1996 - Wayson Choy, The Jade Peony
- 1997 - Rhodri Windsor Liscombe, The New Spirit: Modern Architecture in Vancouver, 1938-1963
- 1998 - Chuck Davis, The Greater Vancouver Book: An Urban Encyclopaedia
- 1999 - Bud Osborn, Keys to Kingdoms
- 2000 - Lilia D'Acres and Donald Luxton, Lions Gate
- 2001 - Madeleine Thien, Simple Recipes
- 2002 - Keith Carlson, ed., A Sto:lo-Coast Salish Historical Atlas
- 2003 - multiple winners
- Lincoln Clarkes, Ken Dietrich-Campbell, Patricia Canning and Elaine Allan, Heroines
- Reid Shier, ed., Stan Douglas: Every Building on 100 Block West Hastings
- 2004 - Daniel Francis, L.D.: Mayor Louis Taylor and the Rise of Vancouver
- 2005 - Lance Berelowitz, Dream City: Vancouver and the Global Imagination
- 2006 - multiple winners
- Jean Barman, Stanley Park’s Secret: The Forgotten Families of Whoi Whoi, Kanaka Ranch and Brockton Point
- James P. Delgado, Waterfront: The Illustrated Maritime History of Greater Vancouver
- 2007 - Michael Kluckner, Vancouver Remembered
- 2008 - Brad Cran and Gillian Jerome, Hope in Shadows: Stories and Photographs of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
- 2009 - Lee Henderson, The Man Game
- 2010 - Bruce Grenville and Scott Steedman, Visions of British Columbia
- 2011 - Michael Christie, The Beggar's Garden
- 2012 - W. H. New, YVR
- 2013 - Amber Dawn, How Poetry Saved My Life
- 2014 - David Stouck, Arthur Erickson: An Architect's Life
- 2015 - Wayde Compton, The Outer Harbour: Stories