Toronto Star journalist Joanna Chiu has won the Writers’ Trust of Canada 2022 Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing.

Chiu was awarded the $25,000 prize for her book, China Unbound: A New World Disorder (House of Anansi Press), at the Politics and the Pen gala in Ottawa on Tuesday night.

Chiu’s book was one of five titles shortlisted for this year’s prize. The prize is awarded annually to a book of literary merit that has the potential to shape Canadians’ thinking on political life.

In their citation, the jury, comprised of Ottawa journalist Charelle Evelyn, author and past prize finalist Jacques Poitras, and past Conservative Party of Canada deputy leader Lisa Raitt, commended Chiu for her “on-the-ground reporting and … brisk, smart analysis of China’s creeping influence in Canada and around the world.”

“China Unbound is a sweeping portrait of a rising superpower that is essential reading for any follower of Canadian politics,” the jury said.

The jury chose the winner and shortlisted titles from 28 books submitted by 19 publishers. Previous winners of the award include Tanya Talaga, Kamal Al-Solaylee, and last year’s winner, Ronald J. Deibert.