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November 09, 2020Saumiya Balasubramaniam's Beautiful New Picture Book is a Pathway to "Appreciate the Magic in the New"
In a sea of endless Canadian snow, Ma misses the colours and warmth of home — so far away now it's hard to explain to her little girl as they walk home from school. But her daughter's joy in the cold ...
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December 20, 2022Cary Fagan on Learning to Write Freely as His Atmospheric New Novel Unleashes Wild Animals in Unexpected Places
In Cary Fagan's The Animals (Book*hug Press), the facade of Dorn's village is peaceful and perfect, making it a popular, quaint tourist destination. But for Dorn, the cheerful exterior hides torment. ...
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March 17, 2022A Great Kids' Book is "a Kind of Graffiti": Sara Cassidy on Why Wonder, Not Instruction, is at the Centre of Her Writing
A little girl tosses a snack to some birds at a bus stop. It's a small gesture, but in Sara Cassidy's Flock (Groundwood Books, illustrated by Geraldo Valério), it becomes the jumping off point for a ...
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November 27, 2015On "Fiction" - Writing from Real Life
Over the past while I’ve noticed a number of situations where an author is asked about the autobiographical or non-fiction elements in their books. It has always been something that people are interested ...
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April 17, 2023"My Poetry isn’t Mine to Define to You, My Friend" Ayomide Bayowa on His Masterful Debut Collection, Gills
Mississauga poet laureate Ayomide Bayowa's full length debut Gills (Wolsak & Wynn) is a lyric, thoughtful exploration of the immigrant experience, the insurmountable challenges of economic inequality ...
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July 10, 2018Alain Deneault on Late Stage Capitalism & the Curious, Harmful Rise of the Mediocre
Alain Deneault is known for his take-no-prisoners approach to challenging corporations and political systems that undermine the public good (in particular, he is well known for being the target of lawsuits ...
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July 19, 2017Christine McNair on How Life Events Impact Writing & the Seismic Effect of Great Books
Christine McNair's first collection of poetry, Conflict, landed with a big splash: it was a finalist for the City of Ottawa Book Award, the Archibald Lampman Award, and the ReLit Award, and was shortlisted ...
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August 30, 2017“I think suffering shows us who we truly are.” - Q&A with Gurjinder Basran
A Q&A with Gurjinder Basran, author of Someone You Love is GoneIn 2010, debut novelist Gurjinder Basran won the Search for the Great BC Novel Contest, and the following year took home the Ethel Wilson ...
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November 14, 2017Stuart Ross on Experimental Novels, Big Ideas in Short Word Counts, & Juggling Multiple Projects
Stuart Ross' contributions to the Canadian literary scene are almost too lengthy to list. From his staggering 20 books of acclaimed writing in multiple genres to his work as part of the small press scene ...
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January 05, 2023Karin Wells on the Incredible, Overlooked Women in Canadian History
No one wants to read a book with half the pages ripped out. And yet that is how we're often taught history in Canada – with the accomplishments and stories of women minimized and ignored. In More Than ...