“’The quest for a new child-centred and humanistic education in Canada was born in British Columbia in the first years of the 1960s, significantly earlier than in the rest of the country,” Dr. Rothstein writes. “Alternative schools in BC were also more prolific and varied than in any other province.’” Patrick A. Dunae reviews Alternative Schools in British Columbia 1960-1975: A Social and Cultural History, by Harley Rothstein (Victoria: Friesen Press, 2024) $30.99 / 9781039135574
“In sum, in my respectful view, too much of this book is little more than a handy compendium of familiar sources strung together to prove a point. It is reminiscent of the approach taken in Grave Error, whereby those authors seek to advance a counter-narrative.” Richard Butler reviews Reconciling History: A Story of Canada, by Jody Wilson-Raybould and Roshan Danesh (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2024) $39.95 / 9780771017230
“Hill presents a compelling case for Antifa relevance in its fight against racism, fascism, and authoritarianism, providing a detailed history of events in our past, so we can better understand our probable future.” Jeffrey Stychin reviews The Antifa Comic Book: Revised and Expanded, by Gord Hill (Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2025) $24.95 / 9781834050041
“Don’t Be Canada contests such a generous comparison between Canada and the rest of the democratic world. Its very basis is that Canada is unique in doing a number of things wrong, voluntarily engaging in self-destructive activities in an attempt to appeal to a progressive American mindset.” Eugene Lacey reviews Don’t Be Canada: How One Country Did Everything Wrong All At Once, by Tristin Hopper (Toronto: Sutherland House, 2025) $23.95 / 9781998365364
“It’s rare to find a holiday book that resists the expectation of comfort. Better Next Year is one such example. These stories sit with estrangement, failed reconciliations, uneasy rituals, and trauma.” Selena Mercuri reviews Better Next Year: An Anthology of Christmas Epiphanies, by JJ Lee (ed.) (New Westminster: Tidewater Press, 2023) $24.95 / 9781990160271
“One of the most compelling aspects of the collection is its counterculture energy. There is a clear rejection of the idea that Canada’s value lies in its utility to the United States, a challenge to a worldview that reduces national identity to geopolitical convenience. The essays ripple with a sense of defiance that is both invigorating and necessary, particularly in an era when political rhetoric often blurs the line between hyperbole and threat.” Jeffrey Stychin reviews Canada Is Not the 51st F**king State! Canadians Face Off Against Donald Trump’s Worst Idea Ever (New Westminster: Cosmic Cranium Press, 2025) $27.99 / 9781069072610
“But mostly we see people alone, like the guy sleeping in a van or the haunting shot of two young women divided by a bus shelter pane, each intent on their phone. Why are we so alone, DeCroo’s poems wonder, and in one of them he hopes he will find a face that will provide the answer.” Sheldon Goldfarb reviews Night Moves: The Street Photography of Rodney DeCroo, by Rodney DeCroo (Vancouver: Anvil Press, 2025) $40 / 9781772142396
In a non-linear and associative collection of poetic assemblages, a writer ponders an impressive assortment of ideas: from the afterlife and everyday life to queer masculine desire, settler culture, and the natural world. —Brooke Lee reviews The Idea of an Entire Life: Poems, by Billy-Ray Belcourt (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2025) $25.00 / 9780771014017
“When I arrived at Burnaby’s Simon Fraser University in the spring of 1970, the dust had barely settled on the previous five years of growing pains. A Magical Time took me back to the many exciting moments that would leave a lasting impression on members of my student cohort for better or worse.” Ron Verzuh reviews A Magical Time: The Early Days of the Arts at Simon Fraser University by the Simon Fraser University Retirees Association (Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2025) $38.95 / 9781998526062
Although a few missteps are in evidence, a Vancouver Island author’s debut novel—set near Tofino in 1968—introduces a “worthy mystery with a captivating setting.” —Valerie Green reviews Fake Out, A Long Beach Mystery, by Faye Bayko (Victoria: Tellwell Publishing, 2025) $26.99 / 9781779624789
With vicious bare-knuckle fights, illicit booze runs, and bloody tussles with Al Capone’s goons, a veteran crime novelist gives the career of Huck Waller an immense, though gritty, appeal. —Ron Verzuh reviews Dirty Little War: A Crime Novel, by Dietrich Kalteis (Toronto: ECW Press, 2025) $26.95 / 9781770417960
“Gumboots in the Straits is a book of poignant nostalgia, even romance, evoking the BC coast as experienced by men now in their 70s and 80s. It was a special time and place of beauty, serenity, opportunity, and adventure for those attracted to the sea, boats, and closeness to nature.” Tom Koppel reviews Gumboots in the Straits: Nautical Adventures from Sointula to the Salish Sea, edited by Lou Allison with Jane Wilde (Qualicum Beach: Caitlin Press, 2024) $26 / 9781773861548
In which a university student from the burbs changes jobs in the heart of Montreal during the year of the Olympic Games.— “A Sound Education,” by E.R. Brown
At its best, a debut collection of 15 stories is deeply unsettling, anxiety-inducing, and memorably character-driven. —Zoe McKenna reviews I Will Wander On: Terrifying Tales of Life, Love, & Death, by Ron Prasad (Acheson: iUniverse, 2024) $30.95 / 9781663266477
In book form, a current exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario commands attention, draws the eye, and titillates the mind. —Brett Josef Grubisic reviews Light Years: The Phil Lind Gift, by Adam Welch (Fredericton: Goose Lane Editions and Art Gallery of Ontario, 2024) $40.00 / 9781773104393
A baker’s dozen of engrossing stories range broadly—from militaristic dystopias to the Vietnam War—and often portray the volatile dynamics of men in imbalanced relationships. —Theo Dombrowski reviews Unsettling Dreams, by Michael Whatling (Victoria: Mortal Coil Books, 2024) $16.99 / 1777569958
“In fewer than ninety pages, Dobie has produced an incredibly nuanced, eminently readable novel full of insights on being unhoused, a disappearing middle class, and the difficulties of romantic relationships, particularly when both parties have differing communication styles.” —Jessica Poon reviews The Tenants, by Pat Dobie (Vancouver: Anvil Press, 2024) $18.00 / 9781772142297
An “honourable and compassionate compendium of heartfelt statements from people who were willing to go to jail for their beliefs.” Sadly, it’s “over-long and at times tediously repetitive” too. —Ron Verzuh reviews Standing on High Ground: Civil Disobedience on Burnaby Mountain, edited by Rosemary Cornell, Adrienne Drobnies, and Tim Bray (Toronto: Between the Lines Books, 2024) $29.95 / 9781771136631
“If you’ve grown weary of heterosexual couples… [and] like the idea of a Sapphic romance involving literate characters,” then this dark fantasy will keep you enthralled. —Jessica Poon reviews Serpentine Valentine, by Giana Darling (BC: Giana Darling Publishing, 2024) $24.95 / 9781774440469
