logo
13 Canadian short story collections to read for Short Story Month

13 Canadian short story collections to read for Short Story Month

CBC13-05-2025

May is Short Story Month. Celebrate by checking out one of these great Canadian short story collections.
If you're also interested in poetry, the 2025 CBC Poetry Prize is accepting submissions until June 1. You can submit an original, unpublished poem or collection of poems of a maximum of 600 words (including titles).
The 2025 CBC Poetry Prize is accepting submissions!
Annapurna's Bount y by Veena Gokhale
Delight your tastebuds and imagination in Annapurna's Bounty, a collection of Indian legends where food plays different roles in the lives of a diverse cast of characters — from kings and commoners to witches, goddesses, gurus, bandits, refugees and travelers. Each story is also paired with a vegetarian recipe from the four corners of India.
Veena Gokhale is a Montreal-based author. Her previous works include the fiction books Bombay Wali and Other Stories and Land for Fatimah. She has also worked in journalism, teaching, literary curation and the non-profit sector.
From a lovelorn journalist entering a diabolical pact to a tourist attempting to stay sober, Dead Writers is a collection of short stories exploring what the ever-changing concept of "bargain" means, and the heavy price that comes with corrupting your soul.
Jean Marc Ah-Sen is a Toronto-based writer of Mauritian descent. His books include Grand Menteur, In the Beggarly Style of Imitation and Kilworthy Tanner. His writing has appeared in Literary Hub, Catapult, The Comics Journal, Maclean's, Hazlitt, the Globe and Mail, The Walrus and The Toronto Star.
Michael LaPointe is a writer and critic from Toronto. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The New York Times and the Times Literary Supplement. He is also the author of the thriller The Creep.
Regina-raised Cassidy McFadzean is a past finalist for the CBC Poetry Prize and The Walrus Poetry Prize. Her previous works include the poetry books Drolleries, Crying Dress and Hacker Packer, which won two Saskatchewan Book Awards. She also wrote a crown of sonnets called Third State of Being. She currently lives in Toronto.
Naben Ruthnum is a Toronto journalist and writer. His 2017 book Curry is an engaging and insightful long-form essay that connects the dots between the popular dish and how it functions as shorthand for brown identity in representing the food, culture and social perception of the South Asian diaspora. Under the pseudonym of Nathan Ripley, he is also the author of Find You in the Dark, which was an Arthur Ellis Awards finalist for best first novel. Your Life Is Mine, his second thriller using the pseudonym, was published in 2019.
A Quiet Disappearance by Rabindranath Maharaj
A Quiet Disappearance is a story collection revolving around older men and women from the Caribbean islands who must face their pasts, with contend with regret and what could have been. Stories focus on marginalized characters who are at a critical juncture in life and contemplating the passing of others with whom they shared a relationship.
Rabindranath Maharaj is the author of several novels and short story collections. His novel The Amazing Absorbing Boy won both the Toronto Book Award and the Trillium Book Award. Previous books were nominated for various awards, including the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, The Chapters First Novel Award and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. In January 2013, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. His work has also appeared in The Washington Post, The Globe and Mail and The Toronto Star, among others.
A Way to Be Happy by Caroline Adderson
A Way to Be Happy is a short story collection that follows various characters as they try to find happiness. Ranging from mundane to extraordinary, the stories feature everything from a pair of addicts robbing parties to fund their sobriety to a Russian hitman dealing with an illness and reliving his past.
Caroline Adderson is the Vancouver-based author of five novels, including The Sky is Falling, Ellen in Pieces and A Russian Sister. She has also published two short story collections, including the 1993 Governor General's Literary Award finalist Bad Imaginings.
Adderson's awards include three B.C. Book Prizes, a National Magazine Award Gold Medal for Fiction. She has received the 2006 Marian Engel Award for mid-career achievement. She is also a three-time winner of the CBC Literary Prizes, and A Way to Be Happy was longlisted for the 2024 Giller Prize.
The short story collection Bad Houses features narratives that are dark, witty and with elements of horror and the absurd. Its stories include a doctor who discovers a double-edged cure for the Ebola virus, a college student who loses a different body part each time they return home for the summer, a hairdresser striving to keep his client's secrets and a young girl who develops a fascination with the trolls that harvest her father's pumpkin patch.
John Elizabeth Stintzi is a writer from northwestern Ontario, currently based in Kansas City, Mo. Their work Selections From Junebat won the 2019 RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers and the Malahat Review's 2019 Long Poem Prize. The complete poetry collection, Junebat, was published in 2020. They are also the author of the novel Vanishing Monuments, which was a finalist for the 2021 Amazon Canada First Novel Award.
From climate change to the declining population of bees, Devouring Tomorrow is a collection of short stories that imagines how the current social, environmental and political issues of our time will affect not only how much food we eat, but what we eat and how we eat it.
Jeff Dupuis is the Toronto-based author of the Creature X Mystery series.
A.G. Pasquella is an American Canadian writer based in Toronto. He is the author of the Jack Palace series, which includes the novels Yard Dog, Carve The Heart and Season of Smoke. His writing has appeared in McSweeney's, Wholphin, The Believer, Black Book, Broken Pencil and Utne Reader.
Skin by Catherine Bush
Skin is a collection of stories that delves into how acts of intimacy can take on strange and perplexing forms in a world shaped by climate change, ecological disasters and the tumult of viruses. From a man who falls in love with the wind to a woman fixated on washing strangers' feet, the stories explore the unexpected ways human connection is affected by a transforming world.
Catherine Bush is the Toronto-based bestselling author of five novels. Her previous works include the Trillium Book Award finalist Claire's Head and New York Times Notable Book The Rules of Engagement. Her latest novel Blaze Island was a Globe and Mail and Writers' Trust of Canada Best Book of the Year and a 2021 Hamilton Reads Selection. Bush is an associate professor at the University of Guelph's Creative Writing MFA program.
Enjoy Your Stay at the Shamrock Motel by Andrew Kaufman
The Shamrock Motel can't be reached with directions — you can only get there if you're lost in your heart and soul. In Enjoy Your Stay at the Shamrock Motel, a collection of connected stories share how a stay at the mysterious motel leads to transformative, and wild experiences.
Andrew Kaufman is a writer from Ontario. His previous works include the novel All My Friends Are Superheroes which won the Relit Award, was nominated for the Leacock Medal for Humour and listed among the best books of the year by The Globe and Mail.
Good Victory by Mikka Jacobsen
From a woman reconnecting with a childhood friend at a psychic fair, to a neuropsychology student stealing cocaine from his lab rat to impress a date, Good Victory is a collection of short stories about the strange and absurd aspects of growing up, and being human, in the 21st century.
Mikka Jacobsen is a writer of fiction and non-fiction from Calgary. Her work has appeared in Joyland, The Fiddlehead and Prairie Fire, among others. She is also the author of Modern Fable, a collection of essays. Good Victory is her first collection of stories.
Coexistence by Billy-Ray Belcourt
Complex Indigenous lives intersect in the stories that make up Coexistence. Stretching across Canadian prairies and the West Coast, we travel to reserves, university campuses and lodgings of old residential schools to meet characters learning to live with and love one another and accept the realities of the past, present and future happening together all at once.
Billy-Ray Belcourt is a writer from Driftpile Cree Nation in Alberta. His first novel was A Minor Chorus. This Wound is a World, Belcourt's debut collection of poetry, won the 2018 Griffin Poetry Prize. The collection also won the 2018 Indigenous Voices Award for most significant work of poetry in English and was a finalist for the 2018 Governor General's Literary Award for poetry.
Other Worlds by André Alexis
Spanning from 19th-century Trinidad and Tobago to a small town in Ontario, from Amherst, Massachusetts to modern-day Toronto, Other Worlds is a short story collection that explores characters encountering moments of profound puzzlement in these diverse settings.
André Alexis was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, and raised in Ottawa. His debut novel, Childhood, won the Books in Canada First Novel Award (now known as the Amazon.ca First Novel Award) and the Trillium Book Award, and was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. His other books include Pastoral, Asylum, The Hidden Keys, Despair and Other Stories of Ottawa and Days by Moonlight, which won the 2019 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize and was on the 2019 Scotiabank Giller Prize longlist.
Alexis's novel Fifteen Dogs, championed by Humble The Poet, won Canada Reads 2017 and the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
In Pratap Reddy's second short story collection Remaindered People & Other Stories, he sheds light on an often overlooked side of immigration: the parents who stay behind in their home country while their children move abroad. The stories explore the difficult choices these parents face, such as whether they should join their children in their new country or wait for them to return.
Reddy works as an underwriter by day and a writer by night, focusing on both the joys and struggles of newly arrived immigrants. His previous works include the novel Ramya's Treasure and the short story collection Weather Permitting & Other Stories. He lives in Mississauga, Ont.
Not the Same Road Out edited by K.J. Denny
Not the Same Road Out is a story collection set along the many roads and byways of the Trans Canada Trail, stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific to the Arctic oceans. The book features a story for every province and territory; the tales within include moments of mystery, horror and melodrama alongside themes of estrangement, engagement and isolation.
K.J. Denny is a journalist and editor with more than 30 years of experience in Asia, North America and the United Kingdom. She is currently an independent creative consultant. Denny formerly worked in magazine and book publishing.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'Stop trying to rationalize what you like': Brian Francis shares 3 books on guilty pleasures
'Stop trying to rationalize what you like': Brian Francis shares 3 books on guilty pleasures

CBC

timean hour ago

  • CBC

'Stop trying to rationalize what you like': Brian Francis shares 3 books on guilty pleasures

Is there truly such a thing as a guilty pleasure? Canadian writer Brian Francis defines it as those indulgences in life that are reserved for only us and are often kept a secret. At the same time, especially in reading, he questions if calling certain genres guilty pleasures serves us any good. "I think at some point in your life, you just have to stop trying to rationalize what you like. Stop trying to feel like you're not up to speed with everyone else and just do what you enjoy doing because you're happier when you do that… within moderation," said Francis. Francis is the author of the Canada Reads 2009 shortlisted book Fruit and the memoir Missed Connections, which was a finalist for the 2022 Trillium Book Award, recognizing excellence in literature by Ontario writers. He joined Antonio Michael Downing on The Next Chapter to spill some of his guilty pleasures, as well as books that explore why things like donuts and reality television are often seen as such. The Donut by Steve Penfold "All of us sort of have a food that maybe we know isn't maybe the best for us, but we can't help indulging in when we're feeling a certain way or coming home late at night … and certainly in Canada, I think donuts tend to be a bit of a guilty pleasure," said Francis. In The Donut: A Canadian History scholar Steve Penfold delves into what makes the sugary pastry the unofficial national food. Examining the social and cultural impact of donuts as something found at most rest stops across the country, as well as the commercial impact of chains like Tim Horton's, Penfold notes donuts as key examples of consumerism in Canada in the twentieth century. Penfold is a writer and professor at the University of Toronto. His work focuses on the cultural history of twentieth century Canada and his other works include A Mile of Make-Believe and The Worker's Festival. Cue the Sun! by Emily Nussbaum "I think many of us have sort of conflicted emotions about [reality TV] in general. I think that for me, it's seeing people on TV sometimes that are either chasing after fame or they are perfectly fine with putting their messy lives on the screen for everybody to kind of watch and judge, but at the same time I can't stop watching it," said Francis. Cue the Sun! The Invention of Reality TV traces the origins of the pop culture genre and how it has evolved into the media seen today. Beginning with the turn from reality radio to television, then rise of the "dirty documentary" and then popularization of shows like Survivor or The Bachelor, staff writer for The New Yorker, Emily Nussbaum provides a comprehensive history of the genre. Nussabaum is an American writer, culture critic and current staff writer for The New Yorker. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 2016 for criticism and is currently based in Brooklyn, New York. Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix "Of all the movies and all the quality entertainment I could be indulging in right now, why am I going to Children of the Corn? … When I think about why I'm drawn to like horror, particularly bad horror, is that it reminds me probably of being a kid," said Francis. Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of '70s and '80s Horror Fiction is a collection of iconic and forgotten horror book covers from decades past. Grady Hendrix, a fellow writer of the genre, explores the fascination with 'trashy' thrillers in this period and graphic design trends that sought to be the next Exorcist or Stephen King. This compilation also includes short insights to the artists and writers behind the spooky and sometimes cheesy paperback book covers. Hendrix is an American horror novelist and screenwriter. His novels include How to Sell a Haunted House, The Final Girl Support Group and The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. He currently lives in New York.

Linwood Barclay, Uzma Jalaluddin and Eliza Reid among authors at the Motive Crime & Mystery Festival
Linwood Barclay, Uzma Jalaluddin and Eliza Reid among authors at the Motive Crime & Mystery Festival

CBC

timean hour ago

  • CBC

Linwood Barclay, Uzma Jalaluddin and Eliza Reid among authors at the Motive Crime & Mystery Festival

Social Sharing Linwood Barclay, Uzma Jalaluddin and Eliza Reid are among the authors at this year's Motive Crime & Mystery Festival. Presented by the Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA), Motive is a festival focused on crime and mystery literature; this year's event takes place June 27-29, 2025 at the University of Toronto. Canada Reads 2025 contestant and bestselling author Linwood Barclay will be there to discuss his most recent novel, Whistle, which dips into the horror genre as a train set comes to life with sinister motives. In Whistle, Annie moves to a charming town in upstate New York with her young son. She's reeling from the sudden death of her husband in an accident and the fact that one of the children's books she authored and illustrated ignited a major scandal. Linwood Barclay's latest novel, Whistle, is a spooky tale about an evil toy train set — read an excerpt now When her son, Charlie, finds an old train set in a locked shed on their property, he's thrilled, but there's something eerie about the toy. As weird things start happening in the neighbourhood, Annie can't help but feel that she's walked out of one nightmare and right into another. Barclay has written over 20 books, including thrillers I Will Ruin You, Find You First, Broken Promise and Elevator Pitch and the middle-grade novels Escape and Chase. Many of Barclay's books have been optioned for film and television, and he wrote the screenplay for the movie Never Saw It Coming, adapted from his novel of the same name. His books The Accident and No Time for Goodbye were made into a television series in France. Barclay lives near Toronto. He championed the memoir Jennie's Boy by Wayne Johnston on Canada Reads 2025. Linwood Barclay and Wayne Johnston dish on Canada Reads strategy — and the magic of writing a life's story Jalaluddin will also be at the festival. A romance writer making her debut when it comes to cozy mystery, she'll be discussing her latest book, Detective Aunty. In Detective Aunty, when recently widowed Kausar Khan hears that her daughter has been accused of murdering the landlord of her clothing boutique, nothing can hold her back to help figure out who is the true culprit. But even Kausar is unprepared for the secrets, lies and betrayals that she'll uncover along the way. Uzma Jalaluddin explains how writing about love is similar to writing about murder Jalaluddin is a teacher, parenting columnist and author based in Ontario. Her previous works include the novels Ayesha At Last, Hana Khan Carries On, Much Ado About Nada and Three Holidays and a Wedding. Reid will be attending Motive to discuss her debut novel Death on the Island, a mystery set in Vestmannaeyjar (the Westman Islands) during a diplomatic dinner party. When the deputy ambassador of Canada dies suddenly, her boss, the Canadian ambassador, is quickly thrown under suspicion, and his wife must figure out everyone's secrets to clear his name and save her crumbling marriage. Reid is the writer of Secrets of the Sprakkar: Iceland's Extraordinary Women and How They Are Changing the World. Born in Canada but currently living in Iceland, Reid served the unofficial role of First Lady while her husband was President of Iceland from 2016-2024. You can see the full program on the Motive Crime & Mystery Festival website.

Wildfire upheaval forces cancellation of Thompson's annual Nickel Days festival
Wildfire upheaval forces cancellation of Thompson's annual Nickel Days festival

CBC

time4 hours ago

  • CBC

Wildfire upheaval forces cancellation of Thompson's annual Nickel Days festival

Social Sharing One of northern Manitoba's biggest weekend festivals has been cancelled this year due to the wildfire state of emergency in the province. Thompson's annual Nickel Days was scheduled to take place June 19-22 with a headliner concert by country music star Dean Brody, but the emergency situation in the province called for "a difficult decision," said Jennifer Thackeray, the event's president. "We've had unprecedented wildfires and evacuations in northern Manitoba. Because of this, we felt for the safety and well-being of all residents of northern Manitoba, to cancel Nickel Days," she said. "We did not make this decision lightly." The event is a big deal not just for those in Thompson, but the entire northern region around it, Thackeray said. The city has a population of just over 13,000 and the event's total gate count over the weekend ranges from 15,000-20,000 each year, she said. "So it's basically the whole north that's affected by this decision, but that's what we had to do. We felt that was the most responsible course of action." Manitoba is experiencing the worst wildfire season in recent memory, with about 21,000 evacuees from 27 communities registered with the Canadian Red Cross as of June 9. There are 29 active wildfires and a total of 116 this year to date. "Our thoughts are with all of those who have been impacted by the wildfires and evacuations. Everyone, please stay safe," Thackeray said. Thompson is not threatened by fire but much of the region is. Just 120 kilometres to the south are the Cross Lake fires, which are almost 59,000 hectares combined, while 110 kilometres northeast of Thompson is the Tataskweyak Cree Nation (Split Lake) fire, which is nearly 22,000 hectares. About 185 kilometres west of Thompson, there's a 55,000-hectare fire near Mathias Colomb Cree Nation (Pukatawagan), while 220 kilometres southwest of Thompson is the massive, united Sherridon and Flin Flon blaze, at nearly 308,000 hectares. Mandatory evacuation orders are in place for Pimicikamak Cree Nation and the incorporated community of Cross Lake, Tataskweyak Cree Nation, Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, the city of Flin Flon, Snow Lake, Sherridon, Herb Lake Landing, Grass River Provincial Park and Wekusko Falls Provincial Park, Big Island Lake, Schist Lake, the Little Athapapuskow cottage area, Lake Athapapuskow, Payuk Lake, Twin Lake, Whitefish, White Lake (northwest region) and Bakers Narrows Provincial Park. Nickel Days started in the early 1960s as a small summer festival with a parade and circus and has only been cancelled once before — due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It partnered with the National King Miner competition in 1972 and adopted the present name as a tribute to the nickel deposits that led to the creation of Thompson in the 1950s. The modern event includes a midway with rides and games, vendors, concerts and other stage shows, beer gardens, family games, a parade, a social, various sporting events and, of course, the National King Miner competition, in which miners compete in a series of events, like drilling, pipefitting and ladder climbing. While fire isn't a worry for Thompson, the air quality is impacted by smoke from the fires, Thackeray said. "And right now, non-essential travel is not particularly recommended. You don't want to get … people into Thompson and then not be able to get them out again if the roads are closed," she said. "Basically it was for the safety of all that we had to cancel the event." The festival is held in the lot of the Thompson Recreation Centre, which added another wrinkle, as that facility is hosting evacuees. "Obviously we're not going to displace evacuees to have a community festival," Thackeray said. Organizers will soon be in touch with all of the corporate sponsors to iron things out, and information will be posted in the upcoming weeks about the process for refunds for anyone who purchased Dean Brody tickets.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store