Congratulations to Carol Off, whose book ALL WE LEAVE BEHIND (Random House Canada) has won the 2018 BC National Award for Canadian Non-Fiction! This is one of Canada’s leading literary non-fiction prizes with an award of $40,000.
BC Achievement Foundation Chair, Scott McIntyre says, 
“Congratulations to Carol Off and all the 2018 finalists. Their work provides a compelling lens into issues and stories that have genuine impact on our everyday life. We are blessed with a remarkable pool of writing talent in Canada, demonstrated by this year’s shortlisted authors.”
The 2018 jury panelists included Jan Walter, Jury Chair, editor, publishing executive, bookseller and former Chair of the Kingston WritersFest Board; Rick Antonson, author, book publisher, lecturer and former CEO of Tourism Vancouver; and, Eliza Reid, co-founder of the Iceland Writers’ Retreat, writer, editor and currently the First Lady of Iceland.
From the Jury:
All We Leave Behind is a timely memoir that offers both context to and a close-up of uncomfortable truths: the failures of the West’s involvement in Afghanistan, the hurdles confronting refugees who seek safety in Canada, and the dilemma of a combat journalist expected to maintain professional distance from her sources.
Carol Off relied on Asad Aryubwal’s willingness to reveal the crimes of warlords on whom NATO pinned its hopes for stability after the reign of the Taliban, but his on-camera testimony put him and his family at risk. After precarious years in exile, the Aryubwals hoped for refugee status in Canada; Off decided she had to help. Then began a harrowing seven-year battle with corrupt or hostile bureaucracies, abroad and at home. With bracing insight and a skillfully crafted narrative, this work forces a rethinking of our attitudes to those who ask us for sanctuary.
Transatlantic also wishes to congratulate the shortlisted authors.
To read the press release, please visit www.bcachievement.com/nonfiction/winner.php.