AI and corporate intrigue
Although addictive and inventive, a debut novel’s storyline could use a trim. —Valerie Green reviews The Wickedest of Things, by Russel Barrie (Kamloops: Russel Barrie Books, 2023) $24.00 / 9781738060701
Chocolate, sweetheart?
“One thing I really like about this cookbook is that most of the recipes are relatively simple and straightforward.” Rebecca Coleman reviews Chocolate All Day: From Simple to Decadent, 100+ Recipes for Everyone’s Favorite Ingredient by Steven Hodge (Toronto: Appetite by Random House, 2023) $37.50 ISBN 9780525612025
‘A young woman from Burnaby’
“There is much to admire about Christine Sinclair. Not only is she the top international scorer of all time, but she is well-liked and respected around the world.” Valerie Green reviews Playing The Long Game: A Memoir by Christine Sinclair with Stephen Brunt (Toronto: Vintage Canada, 2023) $23.00 / 9781039004627
A whimsical respite
A joyous “compendium of delightfully quirky short pieces.” —Heidi Greco reviews Jigsaw: A Puzzle in Ninety-Three Pieces, by M.A.C. Farrant (Vancouver: Talon Books, 2023) $19.95 / 9781772015430
Too good for the NHL
“From his first organized game at age twelve, joining players two years older and scoring all three of his team’s goals in a tie match, the gifted forward became unstoppable.” Daniel Gawthrop reviews The Longest Shot: How Larry Kwong Changed the Face of Hockey by Chad Soon and George Chiang, with illustrations by Amy Qi (Victoria: Orca Book Publishers, 2024) $24.95 ISBN 9781459835030
Afloat – an essay
“Yet there are very few communities like mine, where people choose to drop anchor or tie up rather than mow the lawn.” Meg Stainsby’s essay Afloat will take you into the liminal world of the water dweller.
Rage + sin = freedom
Exceptional essays “elicit gasps, induce chills.” —Brett Josef Grubisic reviews Dinner on Monster Island: Essays, by Tania De Rozario (Toronto: HarperCollins Canada, 2024) $17.99 / 9780063299665
Responding to disaster, sexual identity
“Woven into this account is a backstory about the doctor’s evolving career as a brilliant pathologist, his not always successful private life, and his painfully slow coming out as a gay man.” Howard MacDonald Stewart reviews Fifteen Thousand Pieces – A Medical Examiner’s journey through disaster by Gina Leola Woolsey (Hamilton: Guernica Editions Inc., 2023) $25.00 ISBN 9781771838115
‘To the possibilities and pitfalls’
“…Randy Lee Cutler and Ingrid Koenig, two respected professors at Emily Carr University, received a major research grant to work with scientists at TRIUMF, Canada’s principal centre for particle physics research.” John O’Brian reviews Leaning Out of Windows: An Art and Physics Collaboration edited by Randy Lee Cutler and Ingrid Koenig (Vancouver: Figure 1 Publishing, 2023) $45 ISBN 9781773272177
Understanding one’s ‘own kind of tragedy’
A wild ride of a debut novel portrays an aggrieved widow and self-described “aimless fool.” —Tricia Bowering reviews Norma, by Sarah Mintz (Toronto: Invisible Publishing, 2024) $22.95 / 9781778430404
‘Healing power of stitch’
“Readers of this collection will be moved by the brilliance, passion, and honesty of the essays…” Penny Haggarty reviews Sharp Notions: Essays from the Stitching Life by Marita Dachsel and Nancy Lee, editors (Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2023) $32.95 ISBN 9781551529257
Velocipedes, elephants, and other mysteries
Circus-set kids book showcases adventure, mystery, and the fight for women’s equality. —Alison Acheson reviews Ephemia Rimaldi, by Linda Demeulemeester (Toronto: Red Deer Press, 2023) $14.95 / 780889957299
Long-distance run for justice
“…the book presents a moving account of athletic and life achievement despite constant struggle to be treated with basic dignity.” Daniel Gawthrop reviews Races: The Trials & Triumphs of Canada’s Fastest Family by Valerie Jerome (Fredericton: Goose Lane Editions, 2023) $24.95 / 9781773102900
A bounty of ‘beautiful borrowed lines’
A “joyous tribute in poetry and prose” to an esteemed poet. —Mary Ann Moore reviews Hologram: An Homage to P.K. Page, by Yvonne Blomer and DC Reid (editors) (Qualicum Beach: Caitlin Press, 2023)
$26.00 / 9781773861135
Memoir of writer and companion
“His tribute to a very special little dog is both poignant and insightful, showing us how much dogs can teach us about love.” Valerie Green reviews Freddie: The Rescue Dog Who Rescued Me by Grant Hayter-Menzies (Victoria: Heritage House, 2023) $24.95 ISBN 9781772034615
Singing ‘bout revolution
A “lively musical and political education” for readers young and old. —Ron Verzuh reviews Rise Up and Sing!: Power, Protest and Activism in Music, by Andrea Warner (illustrated by Louise Reimer) (Vancouver: Greystone Kids, 2023) $26.95 / 9781771648981
A studio by the lake
“Hughes’ love of nature and the communities of the island shine as a record of twentieth century settlers in this lushly illustrated book.” Christina Johnson-Dean reviews E.J. Hughes: Life at the Lake by Robert Amos (Victoria: Touchwood, 2023) $25.00 ISBN 9781771514194
Notes on megamalls
Debut author blends memoir, mall history, and critique with a “self-effacing love letter to her hometown’s most famous institution.” —Logan Macnair reviews Big Mall: Shopping for Meaning, by Kate Black (Toronto: Coach House Books, 2024) $23.95 / 9781552454725
Sleuthing Buddhist butler. (Hijinx ensue.)
Lighthearted murder mystery leaves reviewer “with a sense of deep satisfaction.” —Trish Bowering reviews A Meditation on Murder, by Susan Juby (Toronto: HarperCollins Canada, 2024) $19.99 / 9781443469524
A ‘visually beautiful book’
“Haley seems uncertain how to talk to children, and sometimes the text reads as if she were lecturing from a blackboard.” Kimiko Murakami: a Japanese Canadian Pioneer by Haley Healey, illustrated by Kimiko Fraser (Victoria: Heritage House, 2023) $12.95 ISBN 9781772034677