Welcome to our second annual CHA Reads! Last year’s series was so great, we could not pass up the opportunity to do it again. So we’re back, with five brand-new readers to review and reflect on the five books shortlisted for the Canadian Historian Association’s (CHA) Sir John A. Macdonald Prize* for the best book in Canadian history published in the last year.
Over the course of this week, five scholars will argue why their book should win the coveted award.
Based on the format of CBC’s Canada Reads, five different scholars have agreed to champion these five books. They are:
- Krista McCracken (Agloma University)
- Ian Jesse (University of Maine)
- Carly Ciufo (McMaster University)
- Dan Horner (Ryerson University)
- Carmen Nielson (Mount Royal University)
And Andrea and I will be acting as the moderators.
Each scholar selected a book that was outside their particular field of expertise, so that the books could be judged on their merits alone. Because we are Canadians and academics, we have decided that this will be a friendly discussion, rather than a competition. To that end, each scholar has written a short piece explaining the merits of their chosen book and why they think it should win the Sir John A. Macdonald Prize.
*For those who aren’t already aware of this, the name of the prize is currently under debate, and will in all likelihood change following this year’s annual meeting.
