TORONTO -- Canadian journalist and social activist Naomi Klein has won this year's Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.
The Montreal native took the $60,000 honour Tuesday night in Toronto for "This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate" (Knopf Canada).
She beat out four other authors for the prize, which is said to be the richest annual literary award for a book of non-fiction published in Canada.
Jury members Charles Foran, Priscila Uppal and Merrily Weisbord chose the finalists from 92 titles submitted by 42 publishers.
CBC News anchor Peter Mansbridge and filmmaker Deepa Mehta helped the jury select the winner.
Toronto-based Klein is well known for her previous books, "No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies" and "The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism."
The Hilary Weston jury said of the winning title: "This groundbreaking book's exploration of climate change from the perspective of how capitalism functions produces fresh insights, and its examination of the interconnectedness between our relationship with nature and the creation of better, fairer societies presents a radical proposal. The author's urgency and outrage is balanced by meticulous documentation and passionate argument.
"Heart and mind go hand in hand in this magisterial response to a present crisis."
The other four finalists for this year's prize -- Susan Delacourt, Charles Montgomery, Paula Todd and Kathleen Winter -- received $5,000 each.
The award is named after the Hon. Hilary M. Weston, who served as the 26th lieutenant-governor of Ontario from 1997 to 2002.
