CANMORE – Several titles from distinguished local authors and Rocky Mountain Books have been shortlisted for prestigious mountain literature awards.
Rocky Mountain Book titles from authors David Smart, Frank Wolf and Canmore local Geoff Powter have been shortlisted in the mountain literature category for both the Banff Mountain Book Competition and the Boardman Tasker Award. Sharon Wood's newly released book Rising, was also shortlisted for the mountain literature in the Banff Mountain Book Competition.
The two Rocky Mountain Books titles shortlisted for the two awards are Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss – Life and Death at the Birth of Free-Climbing by David Smart and Inner Ranges: An Anthology of Mountain Thoughts and Mountain People by Geoff Powter.
Frank Wolf’s Lines on a Map: Unparalleled Adventures in Modern Exploration has been shortlisted for the Banff Mountain Book Competition in Adventure Travel.
Each book encompasses mountain culture and exploration through creative non-fiction literature.
Smart’s book follows the life of Austrian alpinist Paul Preuss whose solo expeditions shook the climbing community with his advocacy for ethically “pure” alpinism, which means climbing without any climbing aids. Preuss’ risky climbing style, whether or not climbers revered or despised it, developed the very core of modern climbing today.
As for Wolf, an environmentalist, filmmaker and writer, his book Lines on a Map: Unparallelled Adventures in Modern Exploration is a compilation of his adventure writing over 20 years. The book emphasizes the spirit of adventure, transporting readers to remote and incredible places around the world.
A Bow Valley local, Powter’s Inner Ranges: An Anthology of Mountain Thoughts and Mountain People, focuses on “the story behind the stories.”
For a full list of finalists for the 2019 Banff Mountain Book Competition, visit https://www.banffcentre.ca/banff-mountain-book-competition and for the 2019 Boardman Tasker Award list, visit http://www.boardmantasker.com.
