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CBC
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
28 Canadian books turning 5 in 2025
Books published in 2020 are celebrating their fifth anniversary this year! Check out this list of 28 Canadian titles celebrating this milestone and see if your favourite title is featured. Five Little Indians by Michelle Good In Five Little Indians, Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie and Maisie were taken from their families and sent to a residential school when they were very small. Barely out of childhood, they are released and left to contend with the seedy world of eastside Vancouver. Fuelled by the trauma of their childhood, the five friends cross paths over the decades and struggle with the weight of their shared past. Five Little Indians won Canada Reads in 2022, championed by Ojibway fashion journalist Christian Allaire. The novel also received the 2020 Governor General's Literary Award for fiction and the 2021 Amazon Canada First Novel Award. It was also on the 2020 Writers's Trust Fiction Prize shortlist and 2020 Scotiabank Giller Prize longlist. Michelle Good is a Cree writer and lawyer, as well as a member of Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. Her debut novel is Five Little Indians. She is also the author of Truth Telling. Mexican Gothic is a gothic horror novel set in 1950s Mexico. It tells the story of a young woman named Noemi who is called by her cousin to save her from doom in her countryside home, the mysterious and alluring High Place. Noemi doesn't know much about the house, the region or her cousin's mysterious new husband, but she's determined to solve this mystery and save her cousin — whatever it takes. Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a Canadian author, who was born and raised in Mexico. She is also the author of the novels Signal to Noise, which won the 2016 Copper Cylinder Award, Gods of Jade and Shadow and The Beautiful Ones. She is also a critic and has edited science fiction anthologies. The Pull of the Stars, set in a war and disease-ravaged Ireland during the 1918 Spanish flu outbreak, tells the story of three women — a nurse, a doctor and a volunteer helper — working on the front lines of the pandemic in an understaffed maternity ward of a hospital, where expectant mothers infected with the virus are quarantined. The timely tale explores how these women change each other's lives in unexpected ways, while witnessing loss and delivering new life. Donoghue is an Irish Canadian writer. Her books include the novels Learned by Heart, Landing, Room, Frog Music, The Wonder and the children's book The Lotterys Plus One. Room was an international bestseller and was adapted into a critically acclaimed film starring Brie Larson. It won the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was shortlisted for the Man Booker and Orange Prizes. Butter Honey Pig Bread by Francesca Ekwuyasi Butter Honey Pig Bread is a novel about twin sisters, Kehinde and Taiye, and their mother, Kambirinachi. Kambirinachi believes she was a spirit who was supposed to die as a small child. By staying alive, she is cursing her family — a fear that appears to come true when Kehinde experiences something that tears the family apart, and divides the twins for years. But when the three women connect years later, they must confront their past and find forgiveness. Francesca Ekwuyasi is a writer, filmmaker and visual artist. Her writing has appeared in the Malahat Review, Guts and Brittle Paper, and she was longlisted for the 2019 Journey Prize. Butter Honey Pig Bread is her first book. Indians on Vacation by Thomas King Indians on Vacation is about a couple named Bird and Mimi, who decide to travel through Europe after discovering postcards from Mimi's long-lost Uncle Leroy, who sent them while on his own European adventure almost 100 years ago. Thomas King is a Canadian-American writer of Cherokee and Greek ancestry. His books include Truth & Bright Water; Green Grass, Running Water, which was on Canada Reads in 2004; The Inconvenient Indian, which was on Canada Reads in 2015; and The Back of the Turtle, which won the Governor General's Literary Award for fiction in 2014. He also writes the DreadfulWater mystery series. We Two Alone by Jack Wang Set over a century and spanning five continents, We Two Alone traces the evolution of the Chinese immigrant experience. Tracing various people, families and professionals across the globe, Jack Wang creates a tapestry of experience that encompasses the trials and tribulations of a diaspora trying to find its place in the world. Wang is a N.Y.-based writer and professor originally from Vancouver. He teaches in the department of writing at Ithaca College and his writing has appeared in publications such as Joyland Magazine, The New Quarterly and Fiddlehead. Wang's debut short story collection, We Two Alone was longlisted for Canada Reads in 2022, shortlisted for the Kobo Emerging Writer Prize and won the Danuta Gleed Literary Award. The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner The Jane Austen Society is a novel about an unexpected community, and the quiet triumph and tragedies of everyday life in post-Second World War Britain. In Chawton, an English village that was the last home of iconic novelist Jane Austen, a small group of locals decide to do what they can to preserve Austen's home and legacy, and hopefully revitalize the town in the process. The group comes together in surprising ways and, despite being very different, unite through their common goal. Natalie Jenner is a novelist based in Oakville, Ont. The Jane Austen Society is her first book. Ridgerunner by Gil Adamson Ridgerunner is a novel about William Moreland, the notorious thief known as Ridgerunner, as he moves through the Rocky Mountains, determined to secure financial stability for his son. His son, Jack Boulton, is trapped in a life not of his own making. Semi-orphaned and under the care of a nun, Sister Beatrice, Jack has found himself in a secluded cabin in Alberta. Little does he know, his father is coming for him. Gil Adamson is a writer and poet. Her first novel, The Outlander, won the First Novel Award and was a Canada Reads finalist in 2009, when it was championed by Nicholas Campbell. She has published several volumes of poetry, including Primitive and Ashland. The Night Piece by André Alexis The Night Piece is a collection of career-spanning stories by Scotiabank Giller Prize and Canada Reads winner André Alexis. Alexis draws from his previous publications, including Despair and Other Stories of Ottawa and Beauty & Sadness, as well as works that have not been previously published. Alexis is the author of Fifteen Dogs, which won Canada Reads 2017 and the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize, and Days by Moonlight, which won the 2019 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. Here the Dark by David Bergen In Here the Dark, David Bergen delivers short stories that interweave across space, exploring faith, loss and complex moral ambiguities. From Danang, Vietnam, to Honduras and the Canadian Prairies, the book collects narratives about place and heart. Here the Dark includes the story that won the 1999 CBC Short Story Prize, How Can n Men Share a Bottle of Vodka? Bergen is a Canadian novelist and short story writer. In 2005, his novel The Time in Between won the Scotiabank Giller Prize. His other books include The Matter with Morris, and Stranger in 2016. His novel The Age of Hope was defended by Ron MacLean on Canada Reads in 2013. A Family Affair is a novel that follows a 40-year-old kitchen designer named Magalie, who maintains a mutually deceptive romance with her partner Mathieu. Unexpected circumstances lead her to Guillaume, a policeman and single father. It was translated into English by Russell Smith. Nadine Bismuth is a writer from Montreal. She has published novels and short story collections. Her 2004 novel Scrapbook was translated into English in 2009. Her 2009 short story collection Êtes-vous mariée à un psychopathe was shortlisted for the Governor General's Literary Award for French-language fiction and was translated into English in 2010. Russell Smith is a writer, journalist and translator. His books include the novels Confidence and Girl Crazy and the memoir Blindsided. A Family Affair is his first book-length translation. The Good German by Dennis Bock The Good German is a reimagined history in which, in 1939, Georg Elser succeeded in assassinating Hitler. But what unfolds is an alternate history where fascism reigns in Europe, and an atomic bomb is dropped on London, and Elser must reckon with the knowledge that his act of heroism changed the course of history — and for what end? Cascade is a collection of short stories from award-winning writer Craig Davidson. The six stories are set in Davidson 's hometown of Niagara Falls, known as Cataract City, and explore what it's like to try to make a life in a town that is struggling economically, where its residents feel left behind and where the glorious, touristy waterfalls distract from deep social, economic and political problems. Davidson has published several books of literary fiction including Cataract City, which was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2013, Rust and Bone, which was made into an Oscar-nominated feature film of the same name, The Fighter, Sarah Court and The Saturday Night Ghost Club. His memoir Precious Cargo was defended by Greg Johnson on Canada Reads 2018. Seven by Farzana Doctor In Seven, Sharifa accompanies her husband on a marriage-saving trip to India, and in order to research her great-great-grandfather — a business-owner and philanthropist. She is fascinated by his four wives, who are never mentioned in her family. At the same time, she tries to reach a middle ground in an ideologically-divided community. The Finder by Will Ferguson The Finder is an adventure novel about finding things that are lost in the world. The story takes readers to Japan, Australia and New Zealand as Interpol agent Gaddy Rhodes, photographer Tamsin Greene and travel writer Thomas Rafferty unexpectedly cross paths as they track "The Finder" — a mysterious figure who believes they can find history's lost objects, such as the missing Romanov Fabergé eggs and Muhammad Ali's Olympic gold medal Will Ferguson has written humour, travel books and fiction. He won the 2012 Scotiabank Giller Prize for his thriller 419. He has won the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour three times: for his novel Generica (now titled Happiness), his Canadian travel book Beauty Tips from Moose Jaw and his travel memoir Beyond Belfast. He currently lives in Calgary. The Beguiling by Zsuzsi Gartner In The Beguiling, a young woman named Lucy had dreamed of being a saint as a child. This dream may actually come true after the death of her cousin Zoltan, and Lucy becomes someone people come to in order to confess their sins. But when the confessions seem connected, Zoltan's death doesn't seem so random anymore. Lucy must then confront her own lapses as a Catholic and a human being, and figure out what is happening, before it's too late. In Agency, a gifted app tester meets her match when she is commissioned to beta test a highly social, and combat-savvy, "digital assistant." In an alternate timeline, in 2017 Hillary Clinton has won the presidential election over Donald Trump. Meanwhile, in London in the 22nd century disastrous events have led to 80 per cent of humanity being wiped out. William Gibson is a legendary Vancouver science-fiction writer. His classic 1984 novel Neuromancer, a thriller about hacking and artificial intelligence, won sci-fi's three biggest prizes: the Nebula Award, the Philip K. Dick Award and the Hugo Award. Crosshairs by Catherine Hernandez Crosshairs is a dystopian novel about a near-future where a queer Black performer named Kay and his allies join forces against an oppressive Canadian regime that is rounding up those deemed "Other" in concentration camps. A near-future Toronto is ravaged by climate change. It is a situation that has led to massive floods, rampant homelessness, unemployment and starvation. In this chaos, a government-sanctioned regime called the Boots seizes the opportunity to force communities of colour, the disabled and the LGBTQ2S into labour camps called workhouses in the city. Catherine Hernandez Scarborough, which was championed on Canada Reads 2022 by actress Malia Baker. CBC Books named Hernandez a writer to watch in 2017. In this collection of stories, Dominoes at the Crossroads, Kaie Kellough navigates Canada's Caribbean diaspora, as they seek music and a connection to their past. Through a broad cast of characters — including jazz musicians, hitchhikers, suburbanites, student radicals, secret agents, historians and their fugitive slave ancestors — Kellough stretches the stories from Montreal's Old Port to as far as the South American rainforests. Kellough is a writer based in Montreal. His novel Accordéon was a finalist for the First Novel Award in 2017. He is also the author of the poetry collection Magnetic Equator, which is currently a finalist for the 2020 Griffin Poetry Prize. Petra is a novel inspired by the life of German activist Petra Kelly. Kelly was a force in Germany in the 1980s, and was a founding member of the German Green Party, which was one of the first Green Parties to rise to prominence. It was through her work that she met her partner, a NATO general named Emil Gerhardt. It was Gerhardt who eventually murdered Kelly in 1992. Petra is the story of Kelly's rise to prominence, her influence on global politics and policy and how her relationship with Gerhardt helped her international influence but was ultimately what ended everything. Shaena Lambert is a novelist currently living in Vancouver. Her novel Radiance was a finalist for the Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. She is also the author of the short story collection Oh My Darling. Consent by Annabel Lyon In Consent, Sara becomes her intellectually disabled sister Mattie's caregiver after their mother dies. But when Sara returns home, she surprisingly finds Mattie married to her mother's handyman, Robert. Sara gets the marriage annulled, driving a wedge between herself and Mattie. When Robert re-enters their lives, Sara and Mattie get entangled with another set of sisters and their difficult relationship: twins Saskia and Jenny. Annabel Lyon is a writer from Vancouver. Her novel The Golden Mean Oxygen, the novella collection The Best Thing for You and the young adult novels All-Season Edie and Encore Edie. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel Emily St. John Mandel's new book, The Glass Hotel, interweaves several complex narratives. Vincent is a bartender in a prestigious hotel on Vancouver Island. When the owner — Jonathan Alkaitis — passes Vincent his card, it becomes the beginning of their story together. Meanwhile, a hooded figure scrawls a cryptic note on a wall in the hotel, and a shipping executive for a company called Neptune-Avramidis — Leon Prevant — sees the note and is shaken. Thirteen years later, Vincent disappears from a Neptune-Avramidis ship. St. John Mandel is a New York-based Canadian writer. Her fourth novel, Station Eleven, was a finalist for a National Book Award and the PEN/Faulkner Award and won the 2015 Toronto Book Award. It was adapted into a TV series for HBO Max, and was on Canada Reads 2023. The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk As Beatrice makes her debut at "bargaining season" — an annual event where wealthy young men and women gather from all over the world to make advantageous marriages — she harbours secret plans that will upend society. Rather than get married, Beatrice plans to bind a greater spirit and become a full magician. Performing the secret ritual goes against the rules of her world, which prohibits women from practicing magic while they can still bear children. With the help of the wealthy Lavan siblings, fiery Ysbeta and her handsome brother Ianthe, Beatrice searches for a way to change old patriarchal traditions. C.L. Polk concocts a page-turning fantasy with love, magic and rebellion swirling at the centre. The Calgary writer's previous books include the award-winning novel Witchmark and its sequel Stormsong. Vanishing Monuments by John Elizabeth Stintzi In Vanishing Monuments, Alani Baum has not seen their mother since they were 17 years old — almost 30 years ago. The non-binary photographer ran away from home with their girlfriend, but when their mother's dementia worsens Alani is forced to run back to her. In the face of a debilitating illness, Alani has to contend with painful memories from the past. John Elizabeth Stinzi is a novelist, poet, teacher and visual artist. They won the RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for emerging writers for their work Selections From Junebat. The complete poetry collection, Junebat , was published in spring 2020. In Misconduct of the Heart, Stevie is a recovering alcoholic and kitchen manager who is trying hard to stop the world around her from collapsing. Her son, who is a veteran, might be succumbing to PTSD, while she tries to manage the eccentrics who work in her kitchen and acclimatize to the idea that she might have a granddaughter she never knew she had. How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa How to Pronounce Knife is a collection of idiosyncratic and diverse stories. Capturing the daily lives of immigrants, Souvankham Thammavongsa captures their hopes, disappointments, trauma and acts of defiance. From a young man painting nails in a salon, to a housewife learning English from soap-operas, How to Pronounce Knife navigates tragedy and humour. Thammavongsa is a writer and poet. Her stories have won an O. Henry Award and appeared in Harper's, Granta, The Paris Review and NOON. She has published four books of poetry, including 2019's Cluster and the novel Pick a Colour. Hench is the story of a woman who pays the bills by doing administrative work for villains. But then an incident involving the world's most popular superhero leaves her injured and gets her fired. She ends up realizing what happened to her isn't unique — and she might have the means to take down the so-called hero who hurt her. How? With every office worker's secret weapon: data. Natalie Zina Walschots is a writer and journalist from Toronto. She is also the author of the poetry collections DOOM: Love Poems for Supervillains and Thumbscrews. Love After the End, edited by Joshua Whitehead Love after the End is an anthology of speculative fiction that imagines a utopian future for LGBTQ and Two-Spirit people, curated and edited by poet and novelist Joshua Whitehead. Contributors include Nathan Adler, Darcie Little Badger, Gabriel Castilloux Calderon, Adam Garnet Jones, Mari Kurisato, Kai Minosh Pyle, David Alexander Robertson, jaye simpson and Nazbah Tom. Whitehead is an Oji-nêhiyaw, two-spirit writer, poet and Indigiqueer scholar from Peguis First Nation. His book, full-metal indigiqueer, is a collection of experimental poems that aim to provoke discussion and debate. His debut novel Jonny Appleseed was championed by actress Devery Jacobs and won Canada Reads 2021.
CBC
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Cody Caetano, Helen Knott and Krista Foss among 2025 Berton House writers-in-residence
Social Sharing Cody Caetano, Krista Foss, Helen Knott, Angela Long, Jesse Keith Butler and Rebecca Thomas will be the 2025 writers-in-residence at the Berton House in Dawson City. The Yukon residency, which is run by the Writers' Trust of Canada, includes a two-month stay, provides a $4,000 stipend and travel to and from Dawson City. The writers will stay in the childhood home of legendary Canadian author, and Writers' Trust co-founder, Pierre Berton. The residency has hosted nearly 100 Canadian writers since 2007. The 2025 contingent is supported by new funding from the Lind Family Foundation and will receive operational support from The Whitehorse Public Library, the Dawson City Community Library Board and the Klondike Visitors Association. Caetano is a Toronto-based writer of Anishinaabe and Portuguese descent and an off-reserve member of Pinaymootang First Nation. Caetano has also published a short collection of poetry, Pleasure Dome Poems and his work has appeared in publications such as Prism International and the Hart House Review. His memoir Half-Bads in White Regalia won the 2023 Indigenous Voices Award for Best Published Prose and was on the 2023 Canada Reads longlist. It was also longlisted for 2023 Toronto Book Award and the 2023 Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour. Foss is an Ontario writer, journalist and author. Her short fiction has appeared in Granta and has twice been a finalist for the Journey Prize. Her debut novel Smoke River won the Hamilton Literary Award. She is also the author of the novel Half Life. Knott is a Dane Zaa, Nehiyaw, Métis and mixed Euro-descent writer from Prophet River First Nations. She is a 2019 RBC Taylor Prize Emerging author and her memoir My Own Moccasins is an international bestseller and won the Saskatchewan Book Award for Indigenous Peoples' Publishing. Her latest book Becoming a Matriarch won the Jim Deva Prize for Writing that Provokes, was the co-winner of the 2024 George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature and was on the longlist for Canada Reads 2025. It was also a finalist for the 2024 Governor General's Literary Award for Nonfiction. Knott is serving as one of the judges of the 2025 CBC Nonfiction Prize. Jesse Keith Butler is a poet who was born in Dawson City and is currently based in Ottawa. His debut collection of poetry is titled The Living Law and his work has appeared in The Orchards Poetry Journal, Blue Unicorn and Arc. Angela Long is a writer and freelance journalist from Vancouver Island. Her work has appeared in Poetry Ireland Review, The Globe and Mail and Utne Reader. She is the author of Observations from Off the Grid and Every Day We Disappear. Rebecca Thomas is a Mi'kmaw writer living in Dartmouth. She was the Halifax poet laureate from 2016 to 2018. She is the author of the poetry collection I place you into the fire. She is also the author of the children's books Grampy's Chair and I'm Finding My Talk, which is a poem responding to the iconic Rita Joe poem I Lost My Talk. "The Berton House Writers' Residency is one of Canada's most beloved artist residency programs and has provided career and life-changing experiences for nearly 100 Canadian writers since 2007," said Writers' Trust of Canada executive director in a press statement. "We look forward to welcoming Berton House's newest cohort of residents and are excited to discover the stories and ideas that will be inspired by their stay." The 2025 Berton House writers-in-residence were selected by artist Darcy Tara McDiarmid, and past writers-in-residence Eliza Robertson and Paul Seesequasis. The Writers' Trust of Canada is an organization that supports Canadian writers through literary awards, fellowships, financial grants, mentorships and more.
CBC
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
10 Canadian books to read for Jewish Heritage Month
May is Canadian Jewish Heritage Month. In recognition of this month, here's a reading list of poetry, fiction and nonfiction by Jewish Canadians. If you're 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). Songs for the Brokenhearted by Ayelet Tsabari In Songs for the Brokenhearted, Zohara is a 30-something Yemeni Israeli woman living in New York City, a life that feels much simpler than her childhood growing up in Israel. When her sister calls to let her know of their mother's death, she gets on a plane with no return ticket and begins the journey of unravelling lost family stories. Ayelet Tsabari is the author of The Art of Leaving, which won the Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Memoir and was a finalist for the Writer's Trust Hilary Weston Prize and The Best Place on Earth, which won the Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature and the Edward Lewis Wallant Award. She spent years living in Canada and is now based in Tel Aviv. Tsabari's short story Green was shortlisted for the 2018 CBC Short Story Prize. How to Share an Egg by Bonny Reichert When Toronto-based journalist Bonny Reichert turned 40, she quit her job and enrolled in culinary school — a life-changing decision that pushed her to explore her relationship with food in writing. This exploration, along with a critical bowl of borscht in Warsaw, led Reichert to writing her memoir, How to Share an Egg, which dives into how food shapes her history as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor. 2020 CBC Short Story Prize. She teaches writing at the University of Toronto. No Jews Live Here explores John Lorinc's Hungarian Jewish family history during the Holocaust, the 1956 Revolution and eventual move to Toronto. It follows Lorinc's grandmother, grandfather and father's experiences with the Nazis. No Jews Live Here uses historical insight and human stories to chart one family's trajectory across cities and cultures. Lorinc is an editor and journalist living in Toronto. His work has appeared in publications including the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail and the Walrus. His books include Dream States: Smart Cities, Technology, and the Pursuit of Urban Utopias and The New City. Lorinc received the 2019/2020 Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy and the 2022 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy. Talking to Strangers is a poetry collection that explores new encounters with people and objects. As is characteristic of celebrated poet Rhea Tregebov, the book dabbles in the art of recollection and elegy with skill and tenderness. Talking to Strangers won the poetry prize for the 2024 Canadian Jewish Literary Awards. Tregebov is a Vancouver-based poet, novelist and children's writer. She's written seven books of poetry and two novels, including Rue des Rosiers, and has won the J. I. Segal Award, the Nancy Richler Memorial Prize for Fiction, the Malahat Review Long Poem Prize, the Pat Lowther Award and the Prairie Schooner Readers' Choice Award. Peggy by Rebecca Godfrey, with Leslie Jamison Peggy tells the story of Peggy Guggenheim and her rise to making her name synonymous with art and genius. From her early beginnings in New York as the daughter of two Jewish dynasties to her adventures in the European art worlds, she is forced to balance her loyalty to her family and her desire to break free from conventions and live her own original life. Rebecca Godfrey was an author and journalist known for her books The Torn Skirt, which was a finalist for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, and the award-winning true crime story Under the Bridge, which was adapted into a Disney+ series. She grew up in Canada but lived in upstate New York. Peggy is her final novel, completed by Leslie Jamison after she died. Jamison is the Brooklyn-based author of The Empathy Exams, The Recovering, the novel The Gin Closet and the memoir Splinters. Watch Out for Her by Samantha M. Bailey Watch Out for Her is about a young mother named Sarah who thinks her problems are solved when she hires a young babysitter, Holly, for her six-year-old son. Her son adores Holly and Holly adores Sarah, who is like the mother she never had. But when Sarah sees something that she can't unsee, she uproots her family to start over. Her past follows her to this new life, raising paranoid questions of who is watching her now? And what do they want? Samantha M. Bailey is a journalist and editor in Toronto. Her first thriller, Woman on the Edge, was released in 2019 and was an international bestseller. Her other novels include A Friend in the Dark and Hello, Juliet. Her journalistic work can be found in publications including NOW Magazine, The Village Post, The Thrill Begins and The Crime Hub. As Good a Place as Any by Rebecca Păpucaru In the novel As Good a Place as Any, Paulina and her brother Ernesto flee Chile's violent 1973 coup and seek refuge in Toronto. Paulina is on her way to achieving her dreams of becoming a star when she lands a big role, but when she participates in an underground abortion-rights movement, she's forced to choose between her personal ambitions and her newfound purpose. 71 Canadian fiction books to read in spring 2025 Rebecca Păpucaru is a Montreal-based writer. Her poetry collection The Panic Room won the 2018 Canadian Jewish Literary Award for Poetry, was a finalist for the A.M. Klein Prize for Poetry and longlisted for the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award. Her work has appeared in the Grain, The Dalhousie Review and The New Quarterly, among others. Her novella Yentas won The Malahat Review's 2020 Novella Prize. As Good a Place as Any is her debut novel. Something, Not Nothing by Sarah Leavitt Following the medically assisted death of her partner of 22 years, cartoonist Sarah Leavitt began small sketches that quickly became something new and unexpected to her. The abstract images mixed with poetic text, layers of watercolour, ink and coloured pencil combine in Something, Not Nothing to tell a story of love, grief, peace and new beginnings. Do You Remember Being Born? by Sean Michaels Do You Remember Being Born? follows a famous poet named Marian Ffarmer, who after years of dedicating herself singularly to her art has started to question her life choices. After receiving an invitation to the Silicon Valley headquarters of one of the biggest tech companies in the world, Marian begins collaborating with a state-of-the-art poetry bot named Charlotte. What follows is a journey of self-discovery for both Marian and Charlotte, as the two begin to form a friendship unlike any Marian has ever known. Sean Michaels was born in Stirling, Scotland and moved to Montreal, where he currently lives, when he was 18 years old. His first novel, Us Conductors, won the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2014 and was nominated for the Amazon First Novel Award, the Kirkus Prize and the International Dublin Literary Award. Michaels is also the founder of the music blog Said the Gramophone. Doppelganger by Naomi Klein In Doppelganger, Naomi Klein blends political reportage and cultural analysis to explore the concept of Mirror World, where elements of far-right movements attempt to appeal to the working class. The book examines issues such as the rise of anti-vaxxers, the implications of artificial intelligence in content curation and how society constructs identities to engage and interact on social media. By referencing thinkers such as Sigmund Freud and bell hooks, Klein also connects to greater social themes to share how one can break free from the Mirror World.
CBC
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Iceland's former first lady Eliza Reid on her debut novel
The bestselling Canadian writer joins Tom Power to talk about her new book, Death on the Island Social Sharing
CBC
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
13 Canadian short story collections to read for Short Story Month
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 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.
