August 20, 2009. Joan Baxter has been nominated for the 2009 Dayton Literary Peace Prize for her work of non-fiction, Dust from our Eyes: An unblinkered look at Africa (Wolsak & Wynn, Fall 2008).

Part memoir, part adventure tale, part political thriller - a compelling read that dissolves stereotypes and exposes paradoxes about Africa. Joan Baxter draws on more than two decades of living in and reporting from Africa to reveal that there is more to the continent than poverty and suffering, and far more to Western involvement than benevolent charity. Alternately funny, chilling, moving and disturbing, Dust from our Eyes is a fast-paced, passionate narrative told with journalistic accuracy and anthropological acumen.

Joan Baxter is a Canadian journalist, award-winning author and anthropologist. In 2002, she was one of the first journalists to gain entry to the rebel-held Côte d'Ivoire to report on the civil war. She reported for many years for the BBC World Service, The Associated Press, and has contributed various features to a variety of CBC programs.

Described in a press release, "the Dayton Literary Peace Prize honors writers whose work uses the power of literature to foster peace, social justice, and global understanding. Launched in 2006, it has already established itself as one of the world’s most prestigious literary honors, and is the only literary peace prize awarded in the United States. As an offshoot of the Dayton Peace Prize, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize awards one fiction and one non-fiction author each year whose work advances peace as a solution to conflict, and leads readers to a better understanding of other cultures, peoples, religions, and political points of view."