Harley Rustad
{{Short description|Canadian writer}}
Harley Rustad is a Canadian journalist, magazine editor, and author of Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas{{Cite news |last=Paterniti |first=Michael |date=January 21, 2022 |title=Seeking Enlightenment, He Disappeared Into a Hiker’s Bermuda Triangle |work=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/21/books/review/lost-in-the-valley-of-death-harley-rustad.html}} and Big Lonely Doug: The Story of One of Canada’s Last Great Trees.{{Infobox person
| name = Harley Rustad
| birth_date = 1985
| nationality = Canadian
| website = https://www.harleyrustad.com
}}
Early life
Rustad was born on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada, where he spent the first few months of his life in a tent while his parents built their home.{{Cite news |last=Lederman |first=Marsha |date=August 21, 2018 |title=Meet Doug: B.C.'s biggest celebri-tree |work=Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-meet-doug-bcs-biggest-celebri-tree/}} He lives in Toronto, Ontario.
Journalism career
Rustad has been an editor and writer at The Walrus, a Canadian general interest magazine, since 2014.{{Cite news |last=Medley |first=Mark |date=May 19, 2017 |title=In wake of cultural appropriation debate, who will take helm of The Walrus? |work=Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/whats-next-for-the-walrus-and-canadian-media/article35057750/}} His writing has appeared in publications including Outside, The Walrus, The Globe and Mail, Geographical, The Guardian, and CNN. He is a faculty editor at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity’s Mountain and Wilderness Writing Residency.{{Cite web|url=https://www.banffcentre.ca/programs/mountain-and-wilderness-writing|title=Mountain and Wilderness Writing|website=www.banffcentre.ca}} He was awarded Editor Grand Prix at the 2024 National Magazine Awards: "Harley Rustad’s commitment to tackling in-depth investigations and features stands out. Rustad's contributions to The Walrus have reinforced its position as one of Canada's leading homes for thoughtful, impactful journalism."{{cite web |title=And the Winners Are… |url=https://magazine-awards.com/en/2024winners/ |publisher=National Magazine Awards}}
= Big Lonely Doug =
His first book, Big Lonely Doug: The Story of One of Canada’s Last Great Trees, a nonfiction book published in 2018 is about the second-largest Douglas fir in Canada that was a saved by a logger who wrapped green LEAVE TREE ribbon around its trunk, and the fight to protect old-growth forests in British Columbia. The tree, Big Lonely Doug, is growing in the middle of a clear cut near Port Renfrew, British Columbia. The book started as a magazine article in The Walrus.{{Cite news |last=Rustad |first=Harley |date=September 19, 2016 |title=Big Lonely Doug |work=The Walrus |url=https://thewalrus.ca/big-lonely-doug/}} The book was nominated for the 2018 Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing,{{Cite news |date=April 3, 2019 |title=Books about masculinity, energy projects among Shaughnessy Cohen Prize finalists |work=Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-books-about-masculinity-energy-projects-among-shaughnessy-cohen-prize/}} the 2019 Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize,{{Cite web |title=BC Yukon Book Prizes Winners and Finalists |url=https://bcyukonbookprizes.com/winners-finalists/#2019 |website=BC Yukon Book Prizes}} and the 2018 Banff Mountain Book Competition.{{Cite news |date=September 10, 2018 |title=Banff Mountain Book Competition Announces 2018 Finalists |work=Rock and Ice |url=https://www.rockandice.com/climbing-news/banff-mountain-book-competition-announces-2018-finalists/}}
= Lost in the Valley of Death =
His second book, Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas,{{Cite book |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/harley-rustad/lost-in-the-valley-of-death/ |title=LOST IN THE VALLEY OF DEATH {{!}} Kirkus Reviews |language=en}} was published in 2022 and investigates the 2016 disappearance of Justin Alexander Shetler in the Parvati Valley, India. It was nominated for a 2022 Banff Mountain Book Award{{cite web |title=Banff Mountain Book Competition Categories Announced Climbing Book Lovers Take Note |url=https://gripped.com/uncategorized/banff-mountain-book-competition-categories-announced-climbing-book-lovers-take-note |website=Gripped}} and a Crime Writers of Canada Award,{{cite news |title=Crime Writers of Canada |url=https://www.crimewriterscanada.com/awards/annual-awards/shortlists}} was a Canadian bestseller,{{Cite news |date=February 15, 2022 |title=The bestselling Canadian books for the week of Feb. 6-12, 2022 |work=CBC |url=https://www.cbc.ca/books/the-bestselling-canadian-books-for-the-week-of-feb-6-12-2022-1.6351372}} and appeared on the cover of the February 13, 2022, New York Times Book Review.{{Cite news |last=Paterniti |first=Michael |date=January 21, 2022 |title=Seeking Enlightenment, He Disappeared Into a Hiker’s Bermuda Triangle |work=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/21/books/review/lost-in-the-valley-of-death-harley-rustad.html}} Lost in the Valley of Death won two awards at the 2023 Poland Mountain Book Awards{{cite news |title=Festiwal Literatury Górskiej |url=https://www.festiwalgorski.pl/festiwal-literatury-gorskiej/festiwal-literatury-gorskiej-ladek-zdroj/ |publisher=Festiwal Górskiej}} and a 2023 US Religion News Association Award.{{cite news |title=2023 Religion News Association Awards |url=https://rna.org/news/congratulations-to-the-2023-excellence-in-religion-reporting-award-winnersnbsp}}
Port Renfrew Writers Retreat
In 2019, Rustad founded the Port Renfrew Writers Retreat on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, a non-fiction writers retreat focused on nature writing.{{cite news |last1=O'Kane |first1=Josh |title=Author Harley Rustad launches new wilderness-focused writers’ retreat |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-author-harley-rustad-launches-new-wilderness-focused-writers-retreat/ |publisher=Globe and Mail |date=January 25, 2025}}
Awards and honors
- 2023 Mountain Literature Awards, Poland (winner non-fiction category and winner Grand Prix) for Lost in the Valley of Death, Polish translation{{cite news |title=Festiwal Literatury Górskiej |url=https://www.festiwalgorski.pl/festiwal-literatury-gorskiej/festiwal-literatury-gorskiej-ladek-zdroj/ |publisher=Festiwal Górskiej}}
- 2023 Religion News Association Award (winner) for Lost in the Valley of Death{{cite news |title=2023 Religion News Association Awards |url=https://rna.org/news/congratulations-to-the-2023-excellence-in-religion-reporting-award-winnersnbsp}}
- 2023 Crime Writers of Canada Award (finalist) for Lost in the Valley of Death{{cite news |title=Crime Writers of Canada |url=https://www.crimewriterscanada.com/awards/annual-awards/shortlists}}
- 2022 Banff Mountain Book Award (finalist) for Lost in the Valley of Death{{cite web |title=Banff Mountain Book Competition Categories Announced Climbing Book Lovers Take Note |url=https://gripped.com/uncategorized/banff-mountain-book-competition-categories-announced-climbing-book-lovers-take-note |website=Gripped}}
- 2022 CBC Best Canadian Non-fiction Books of the Year for Lost in the Valley of Death{{cite web |title=The best Canadian nonfiction of 2022 |url=https://www.cbc.ca/books/the-best-canadian-nonfiction-of-2022-1.6681565}}
- 2018 Globe and Mail Best Books of the Year for Big Lonely Doug{{cite web |title=The Globe 100: Our favourite books of 2018 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-the-globe-100-our-favourite-books-of-2018/ |website=Globe and Mail}}
- 2018 CBC Best Canadian Non-fiction Books of the Year for Big Lonely Doug{{cite web |title=The best Canadian nonfiction of 2018 |url=https://www.cbc.ca/books/the-best-canadian-nonfiction-of-2018-1.4932418 |website=CBC}}
- 2018 Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing (finalist) for Big Lonely Doug{{Cite news |date=April 3, 2019 |title=Books about masculinity, energy projects among Shaughnessy Cohen Prize finalists |work=Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-books-about-masculinity-energy-projects-among-shaughnessy-cohen-prize/}}
- 2018 Banff Mountain Book Award (finalist) for Big Lonely Doug{{Cite news |date=September 10, 2018 |title=Banff Mountain Book Competition Announces 2018 Finalists |work=Rock and Ice |url=https://www.rockandice.com/climbing-news/banff-mountain-book-competition-announces-2018-finalists/}}
- 2019 Roderick Haig-Brown Regional Prize (finalist) for Big Lonely Doug{{Cite web |title=BC Yukon Book Prizes Winners and Finalists |url=https://bcyukonbookprizes.com/winners-finalists/#2019 |website=BC Yukon Book Prizes}}
- 2016 National Magazine Award (silver) "Big Lonely Doug" published in The Walrus.{{cite web |title=Announcing the winners of the 40th Anniversary National Magazine Awards |url=https://magazine-awards.com/en/2017/05/26/announcing-the-winners-of-the-40th-anniversary-national-magazine-awards/ |website=National Magazine Awards}}
- 2015 National Magazine Award (honourable mention) for "Where the Streets Have No Names" published in The Walrus{{cite web |title=The Walrus Awards |url=https://thewalrus.ca/about/awards/#2015 |website=The Walrus}}
Bibliography
- Big Lonely Doug: The Story of One of Canada’s Last Great Trees. House of Anansi Press. 2018. ISBN 978-1487003111
- Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas. Harper. 2022. ISBN 978-0062965967
References
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rustad, Harley}}
Category:Canadian magazine journalists
Category:Canadian male non-fiction writers
Category:Canadian nature writers
Category:Canadian travel writers
Category:Writers from British Columbia
Category:21st-century Canadian journalists
Category:21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers