Story of a devastating wildfire that reads ‘like a thriller’ wins Baillie Gifford nonfiction prize

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — A book about an inferno that ravaged a Canadian city and has been called a portent of climate chaos has won Britain’s leading nonfiction book prize. John Vaillant’s “Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World” was awarded the 50,000 pound ($62,000) Baillie Gifford Prize at a ceremony in London on Thursday. The book recounts how a huge wildfire engulfed the oil city of Fort McMurray in 2016. The blaze, which burned for months, drove 90,000 people from their homes and destroyed 2,400 buildings. The chair of the judging panel, Frederick Studemann, said the book tells “a terrifying story” and reads “almost like a thriller.” Founded in 1999, the prize recognizes English-language nonfiction books from any country.