“Of course, there’s the central theme of the unshakeable love of daughters for their dads no matter their flaws, versus the unforgivable betrayal of mothers who leave their children. Yet, kind-hearted Lori forgives all her relations who could’ve done something—anything—to bring joy, hope, and light to her early years.” Cathalynn Labonté-Smith reviews Dreamer’s Daughter: Surviving My Childhood and Raising My Father, by Lori Thicke (Toronto: Simon & Schuster, 2026) $25.99 / 9781668204498
“By sharing her powerful tale of resiliency with others, [the author] proves that light in times of darkness is possible. It starts with you and the decision to allow light into your own life. The author empowers us by teasing out a shining thread of hope that lives within the dark swath of the unthinkable.” —Jazmine Roberts reviews Sharing the Light: Stories and Reflections, by Monique Gray Smith (Toronto: Anansi, 2026) $26.99 / 9781487013547
“On Sunday, the 22nd, we were relaxing and having breakfast outside after a successful day previous in presenting my Tai Chi talk and demo (there’s an irony!), when we heard some anxious buzz from folks in the building that something was going on. At almost same moment, we saw clouds of heavy dark smoke drifting in just past our building and the big shade tree behind us, as if a house or store was on fire nearby.” Author and poet Trevor Carolan reports from Puerto Vallarta on his recent experience.
“Like Robert Moor, I feel I am a Tree Person, but whereas I write and read articles and books about trees, take photographs of trees from a distance and close-up all year long, and lead tree-identification walks, Moor would take ‘leave of the earth and scamper into its crown. I liked the way climbing trees made me feel (wilder, humbler).'” Nina Shoroplova reviews In Trees: An Exploration by Robert Moor (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2026)
$39 / 9781476739250
A memoir-in-essays, an “unabashedly queer view of life, loves, and the bringing up of the generation to come,” ranges widely and speaks candidly. —Carellin Brooks reviews Staying Power: On Queerness, Inheritances, and the Families We Choose, by Zena Sharman (Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2026) $24.95 / 9781834050164
“I know this collection of work by these women is something readers will refer to time and time again, knowing each time they do, they will find something new to inspire them at exactly the moment they need it.” Valerie Green reviews Something Has Changed: An Anthology of Women’s Voices, by The Pen Pals Writers’ Collective (Nanaimo: Pen Pals Publishing, 2025) $20 / 97810694399505
“Scanlan doesn’t talk about union-negotiated pension plans or union-sponsored retirement planning workshops. I was fortunate to have both. Our retirees’ handbook provided many of the same pointers and it was free. In addition, an employer-paid retirement expert was always available to assist if the going got complicated. I was lucky. For retirees who didn’t have a union, How to Retire is an excellent guide.” Ron Verzuh reviews How to Retire: Retire Knowing You Can Enjoy Every Day, by Steven Scanlan (Chemainus: self-published, 2025) $17.99 / 9781989681336
“Sarah Boon’s particular scientific interest is glacial hydrology and the modelling of the formation of rivers in the unstable melting phase of glaciers. She has also done some interesting work on forest hydrology, specifically on the impact of clearcutting of snow run-off. The memoir is interspersed with interesting comments and insights into glacier formations and on their importance for understanding the impacts of climate change. The focus is, however, on what it means to be a woman scientist in Canada and on Sarah Boon’s journey through a self-destroying system.” Loÿs Maingon reviews Meltdown: The Making and Breaking of a Field Scientist, by Sarah Boon (Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2025) $27.99 / 9781772127911
“Anderson’s love for being in the kitchen and garden is unmistakeably real and infectious. Interspersed with Anderson’s own poetry and sketches, I find the physicality of the book, simply existing in my proximity, to be soothing.” Jessica Poon reviews I Love You: Recipes from the Heart, by Pamela Anderson (New York: Voracious, 2024) $35 / 9780316573481
“First-hand accounts are a wonderful way to experience history. These women were able to answer all sorts of questions that many of the interviewers and magazines from back in the day would never have thought to ask them, allowing Porter the privilege of discovering their stories. Though their stories always were valid, having them recorded as part of the larger narrative is an even more validating experience.” Myshara McMyn reviews Girl Gangs, Zines and Powerslides, by Natalie Porter (Toronto: ECW Press, 2025) $26.95 / 9781770417922
“Sicherman and Breit are writing from mid-life, and the retrospective view they bring is crucial to the book’s structure and its argument. The distance between then and now is what allows them to see clearly enough to name the patriarchy and the misogyny that shaped their experiences in ways they could not have articulated at thirteen or sixteen. The book moves fluidly between past and present, between the girl each woman was and the woman she is now, and this dual temporality gives Bloom its unusual emotional richness.” Selena Mercuri reviews Bloom: Letters on Girlhood, by Claire Sicherman and Nicole Breit (Qualicum Beach: Caitlin Press, 2025) $25 / 9781773861692
“If the first part of the book hooked me with these bargain bites, the middle sections settled into a focus on some meatier topics. While remaining agnostic about parenting and pet ownership (he is neither a parent nor a current pet owner), there is a chapter on the costs of each, which provided fascinating reading. Always, he brings in the human element, relating conversations from folks he interviews.” Trish Bowering reviews Cheapskate in Lotusland: The Philosophy and Practice of Living Well on a Small Budget, by Steve Burgess (Madeira Park: Douglas & McIntyre, 2026) $26.95 / 9781771624633
“Growing up as the youngest child in a Ukrainian-Canadian, dysfunctional family in Calgary, who berated her for being overweight and forced her into being the caretaker of her mentally-ill, neglectful mother, Burrell kept up a façade of being ‘normal’ to her peers.” Cathalynn Labonté-Smith reviews the memoir Why Are You So – , by Cathy Burrell (Victoria: FriesenPress, 2024) $20.49 / 9781038321763
“It’s almost as if unpaid work is not, in fact, actually work. As long as parenting is purely done out of love for children, volunteering a matter of altruism, and writing an endearing hobby that few people ever succeed in, no matter how laborious or tiring, it may not qualify as work—at least, not by a bank determining whether to give you a loan, or by fellow partygoers wondering where to place you in a hierarchy.” Jessica Poon reviews Is This an Illness or an Accident? by Daniela Elza (Qualicum Beach: Caitlin Press, 2025) $24 / 9781773861630
“I had been helping Craig with his book. It also happened that my wife and I had plans to visit the Okanagan for a week in September which corresponded with the dates for the 2025 Okanagan Columbia run. I was very eager to be introduced to Chief Clarence and perhaps even hang out.” Richard Butler reflects on his time attending the 2025 Salmon Celebration.
“Liz Hammond-Kaarremaa begins with a conversation about her discovery and research into the one empirical example of an ancient practice, the raising of almost but not quite domestic animals who lived in isolation to protect them from inbreeding and physical damage, animals bred to provide the weft in essential weavings.” Linda Rogers reviews The Teachings of Mutton: A Coast Salish Woolly Dog, by Liz Hammond-Kaarremaa et al (Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2025) $36.95 / 9781998526024
“A Perfect Day for a Walk by the Water is an excellent example of the mix of observation, reflection, interpretation, and rich language that brings Bill’s books onto the bestseller list time after time.” Marianne Scott reviews A Perfect Day for a Walk by the Water: Exploring Vancouver’s Shores, by Bill Arnott (Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2025) $24.95 / 9781834050201
“In this intimate account, Comox Valley writer Joline Martin uniquely focuses on the draft resisters who came to Vancouver Island and became Canadians.” Ron Verzuh reviews War Resisters: Standing Against the Vietnam War, by Joline Martin (Qualicum Beach: Caitlin Press, 2025) $26 / 9781773861685
“…the memoir They Never Left Me, written by a Holocaust survivor, Evelyn Kahn, assisted by her daughter Hodie Kahn, is very different and extremely powerful.” Valerie Green reviews They Never Left Me: A Holocaust Memoir of Maternal Courage and Triumph, by Evelyn Kahn with Hodie Kahn (Vancouver: Ronsdale Press, 2025) $22.95 / 9781553807322
“Little Brown Birds” and “Someone,” excerpts from Seventy-Two Seasons: A Memoir About Noticing, by M.A.C. Farrant (Vancouver: Ronsdale Press, 2026) $22.95 / 9781553807438
