Terrence Frederick "Terry" (T. F.) Rigelhof (born April 24, 1944) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

writer and academic."Terry Rigelhof changes outlook on life". ''

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'', June 12, 2004. He is best known for ''A Blue Boy in a Black Dress'', his memoir of his time studying at a

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seminary school prior to abandoning the priesthood;"Memoir takes provocative look at religion". ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', January 6, 1996. the book was a shortlisted finalist for the

Governor General's Award for English-language non-fiction The Governor General's Award for English-language non-fiction is a Canadian literary award that annually recognizes one Canadian writer for a non-fiction book written in English. Since 1987 it is one of fourteen Governor General's Awards for Litera ...

at the

1996 Governor General's Awards The 1996 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit were presented on November 13, 1996.Philip Marchand, "Vanderhaeghe wins second fiction prize". ''Toronto Star'', November 13, 1996. English French References {{GovernorGeneralsAwards Go ...

, and won the Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction at the

Quebec Writers' Federation Awards The Quebec Writers' Federation Awards are a series of Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the Quebec Writers' Federation to the best works of literature in English by writers from Quebec. They were known from 1988 to 1998 as the QSPELL ...

. Originally from Regina,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, Rigelhof joined the seminary in the 1960s. He left those studies after a crisis of faith which left him

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, but retained an academic interest in the history and sociology of religion, becoming a longtime instructor at Montreal's

Dawson College Dawson College is an English-language public college in Westmount and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The college is situated near the heart of Downtown Montreal in a former nunnery on approximately of green space. It is the largest CEGEP in the p ...

. He published the novel ''The Education of J.J. Pass'' (1983) and the short story collection ''Je t'aime, Cowboy'' (1993) prior to writing ''A Blue Boy in a Black Dress''; he published one further novel, ''Badass on a Softail'', in 1997 before concentrating on non-fiction writing thereafter."A home for Canlit". ''

'', April 3, 2010. In addition to his books, he was a regular literary critic for ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'' and other publications. His later non-fiction works included the Canadian literature studies ''This Is Our Writing'' (2000) and ''Hooked on Canadian Books: The Good, the Better, and the Best Canadian Novels Since 1984'' (2010); the George Grant biography ''George Grant: Redefining Canada'' (2001);"Lives of the intellectual saints". ''

'', January 12, 2002. and a second memoir, ''Nothing Sacred: A Journey Beyond Belief'' (2004).

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rigelhof, T. F. 1944 births 20th-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian short story writers 20th-century Canadian memoirists Canadian male novelists Canadian male short story writers Canadian male biographers Canadian literary critics 21st-century Canadian memoirists Writers from Regina, Saskatchewan Academic staff of Dawson College Living people Canadian historians of religion 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian biographers Novelists from Saskatchewan Novelists from Montreal