Canada Reads American Style

Book Chat 23

Rebecca and Tara are back for their first book chat of 2025!  They share the titles they've read recently and want to recommend.  Stay tuned to the end where a bit of CBC's Canada Reads pops into the discussion.

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Anne of the Island (Anne of Green Gables) by L.M. Montgomery
• Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
• A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk & Robot, #1); A Prayer for the Crown-Shy (Monk & Robot, #2) by Becky Chambers
• Lies I Told My Sister by Louise Ells https://www.louiseells.ca/
• Arctic Predator: The Crimes of Edward Horne Against Children in Canada's North by Kathleen Lippa

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Sunset Lake Resort by Joanne Jackson
• Grandfather of the Treaties: Finding Our Future Through Wampum Covenant by Daniel Coleman
• A Different Hurricane by H. Nigel Thomas
• The Reinvention of Love by Helen Humphreys

 

Interview - Erin Steele and Sunrise over Half-Built Houses: Love, Longing and Addiction in Suburbia

Rebecca is excited to speak with Canadian author Erin Steele.  Her queer coming-of-age and addiction memoir, Sunrise over Half-Built Houses: Love, Longing and Addiction in Suburbia (Caitlin Press) was published in Canada in 2024 and will be available in the US on February 21, 2025.  Erin also writes “On Being Human” on Substack.  She was a 2022 Writing by Writers fellow and is published in Human Parts, WordWorks, and other online publications.  She lives in Kelowna, BC Canada.  

https://erinsteele.com/

https://www.instagram.com/erinsteelewrites/

https://caitlinpress.com/Contributors/S/Steele-Erin

 

2025 CBC's Canada Reads Long List

The day everyone has been waiting for!!  CBC Books has released the long list for the 2025 Canada Reads debates and Rebecca and Tara offer their predictions for the five books that will compete for the title!

Tara suggests at the end that their predictions are submitted as a podcast rather than as two individuals.  It seems they are looking to raise the odds on how many they get right! lol

(The asterisk below highlights the titles they predict will be announced on January 23, 2025 for the short list.)

• The Whispers by Ashley Audrain*
• Watch Out for Her by Samantha M. Bailey*
• A Two-Spirit Journey by Ma-Nee Chacaby, with Mary Louisa Plummer
• What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, translated by Pablo Strauss*
• The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue
• When the Pine Needles Fall by Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, with Sean Carleton*
• Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper*
• The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard**
• Jennie’s Boy by Wayne Johnston
• Becoming a Matriarch by Helen Knott
• Dandelion by Jamie Chai Yun Liew
• However Far Away by Rajinderpal S. Pal*
• Clyde Fans by Seth
• Girl Runner by Carrie Snyder*
• All Our Ordinary Stories by Teresa Wong*

 

For extensive detail and ongoing coverage, see https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/the-canada-reads-2025-longlist-is-here-1.7421861

 

Our 2025 Reading Goals

Happy New Year!!  Rebecca and Tara sum up their 2024 goals and introduce their reading goals for 2025!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• 2024: Brothers Grimm; Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur; Inclusive Picture Book Challenge; 12 classic women authors
• 2025: Complete Anne of Green Gables and The Chronicles of Narnia series and read more Redwall; read children's books that have "mischievous, clever, independent girl characters"; track "mood reads"

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• 2024: Giller Long List; Agatha Christie; Helen Humphreys
• 2025: Carol Shields Prize for Fiction; Agatha Christie; Helen Humphreys; weed physical TBR; read more short stories

Mentioned:

https://carolshieldsprizeforfiction.com/

https://www.instagram.com/carolshieldsprize/

https://www.riverstreetwriting.com/

https://www.instagram.com/river_street_writes/

 

Our 2024 Top Ten Books

As Rebecca and Tara close out 2024 and a great year of reading, they share their Top Ten list of books!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Ginny Ross Series by Heather Stemp: Amelia & Me; Under Amelia’s Wing; Beyond Amelia
• The Street by Ann Petry
• My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
• Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
• Sisters of the Spruce by Leslie Shimotakahara
• Bird Suit by Sydney Hegele
• Making Up the Gods by Marion Agnew
• Eleanor Courtown by Lucy E.M. Black
• James by Percival Everett
•  Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain, and the Search for a Hidden Past

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast by John Vaillant
• Better Living Through Birding by Christian Cooper; The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan; Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder by Julia Zarankin
• I'm So Glad we Had This Time Together by Maurice Vellekoop
• My Body is Distant by Paige Maylott
• The Knowing by Tanya Talaga
• Coexistence by Billy-Ray Belcourt
• James by Percival Everett
• Followed by the Lark by Helen Humphreys
• All the Colours of the Dark by Chris Whittaker
• Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo

Rebecca and Tara want to thank all of you for listening to and supporting the podcast this past year or longer.  They look forward to creating more fun and interesting content in 2025!

Book Chat 22

Rebecca and Tara have lots of books to share since their last book chat!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Lady Sings the Blues by Billie Holliday
• The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty
• My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
• Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain
• Skid Dogs by Emelia Symington-Fedy
• The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry
• The Pearl by John Steinbeck
• Passing by Nella Larsen
• Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir by Rebecca Solnit

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher
• The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys
• My Body is Distant: A Memoir by Paige Maylott
• The Memoirs of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle: Vol. 1 and 2: A True and Exact Accounting of the History of Turtle Island by Kent Monkman, Gisele Gordon
• I Don't Do Disability and Other Lies I've Told Myself by Adelle Purdham
• All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

 

Tara's Holiday Picks!

Tara shares her holiday reading list!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Precious Cargo: My Year of Driving the Kids on School Bus 3077 by Craig Davidson
• Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir by Rebecca Solnit
• Passing by Nella Larsen
• The Street by Ann Petry

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• The Queen by Nick Cutter
• The Saturday Night Ghost Club; Rust and Bone: Stories by Craig Davidson
• The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict
• The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy 
• Author Hannah Mary McKinnon
• The Christmas Party by Karen Swan
• Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher
• A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli
• The Kingdom of Sweets by Erika Johansen

 

Top Canadian Authors Continued

Rebecca and Tara shared their Top Ten Canadian Books of the 21st Century on YouTube Live on August 24, 2024 but decided they wanted to share additional authors and titles that they highly recommend.

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): 

• Recollections of My Nonexistence by Rebecca Solnit
• The Pearl by John Steinbeck
• Pay No Heed to the Rockets: Palestine in the Present Tense; Driven: the Secret Lives of Taxi Drivers; Precarious: The Lives of Migrant Workers by Marcello Di Cintio
• The Lost Ones; In the Grip of It; It All Falls Down; No Going Back; Fight Like a Girl by Sheena Kamal
• The Red Chesterfield; Fall from Grace; A Killing Winter; Blood Red Summer; The Traitors of Camp 133 by Wayne Arthurson

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• I Don't Do Disability and Other Lies I Told Myself by Adelle Purdham
• The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict
• The Doctor's Sweetheart and Other Stories by L.M. Montgomery
• Fayne; Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald
• The Fionavar Tapestry series; The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
• The Spoon Stealer; Nosy Parker by Lesley Crewe
• Fallsy Downsies by Stephanie Domet
• Hollay Ghadery
• Helen Humphreys

 

 

Book Chat #21

Rebecca is back from a two-week road trip and shares her stops along the way and only two books.  Tara, on the other hand, had a great month of reading!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Loudmouth Books: https://loudmouthindy.com/ / https://www.instagram.com/loudmouthindy/
• President Benjamin Harrison House: https://bhpsite.org/
• Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and Library: https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/
• Dana-Thomas House (Frank Lloyd Wright): https://dana-thomas.org/
• Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum: https://marktwainmuseum.org/
• Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum: https://www.ameliaearhartmuseum.org/
• Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum: https://ameliaearharthangarmuseum.org/
• Amelia & Me; Under Amelia’s Wing; Beyond Amelia by Heather Stemp
• Cahokia Mounds World Heritage & State Historic Site: https://cahokiamounds.org/
• Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library: https://www.vonnegutlibrary.org/
• The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty
• Red Team Blues by Cory Doctorow

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Invisible Prisons by Lisa Moore and Jack Whalen
• We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer
• I'm So Glad We Had This Time by Maurice Vellekoop
• Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo
• Sugaring Off by Fanny Britt with Susan Ouriou
• The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich
• The Real Lolita by Sarah Weinman

Don't forget to check out Rebecca and Tara's latest "Reading from Our Shelves" on YouTube: https://studio.youtube.com/video/uAq2aptzpLc/edit

 

 

Interview - Brett Popplewell and Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain and the Search for a Hidden Past

Rebecca is excited to chat with author Brett Popplewell about his latest book, Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain and the Search for a Hidden Past.

Brett is an author and journalist who joined Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication in 2017. His articles have been recognized by the National Magazine Awards Foundation in best short feature, profiles, investigative reporting, longform writing, sports and travel.

He has written for Bloomberg Businessweek, Mother Jones, The Canadian Press, The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Sportsnet, Maclean’s, The Walrus and more. He is the co-author of The Escapist: How One Man Cheated Death on the World’s Highest Mountains. Published in 2016).

https://brettpopplewell.ca/

https://www.harpercollins.ca/9781443457859/outsider/

https://thewalrus.ca/churchill-portrait/

 

 

 

Interview - Sydney Leigh and Instagoner

Tara chats with author Sydney Leigh about her latest novel, Instagoner, published on August 27, 2024 by Level Best Books; it is the first book in the Bark and Blog Mystery series. When lifestyle blogger Emily finds the body of the local controversial talk show host who also happens to be her arch-nemesis, she enlists the help of her online audience, her best friend and barista Fitz, and furry, four-footed roommate Murray who help solve the crime.

 

Sydney spent several years running a seasonal business, allowing her to spend the cold months in cool places. She now spends her work time thinking about murder and writing cozy mysteries.  She is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers and served on the board of Crime Writers of Canada from 2018-2021.

 

Highlighted books:

• The True Love Experiment; The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
• Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack
• Murder Road by Simone St. James
• Peril in Pink by Sydney Leigh

https://sydneyleighbooks.com/

https://www.instagram.com/sydneyleighauthor/

 

 

Interview - Sarah Raughley and The Bones of Ruin Trilogy

Tara interviews author Sarah Raughley about her trilogy, The Bones of Ruin (The Bones of Ruin, The Song of Wrath, The Lady of Rapture), as well as her new novel, The Queen's Spade, out January 14, 2025. 

 

Sarah grew up in southern Ontario writing stories about freakish little girls with powers because she secretly wanted to be one. She is a huge fangirl of anything from manga to sci/fi fantasy TV to Japanese role-playing games.

 

As a writer, Sarah has been nominated for the Aurora Award for Best Young Adult novel and works in the community doing writing workshops for youths and adults.

 

As an academic, Sarah has a PhD in English. She has taught at McMaster University and acted as a postdoctoral fellow at The University of Ottawa. She currently teaches creative writing at Lakehead University. Her research concerns representations of race and gender in popular media, youth culture and post colonialism.

 

Highlighted titles:

• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
• Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor
• July's People by Nadine Gordimer
• Legendborn; Bloodmarked; Oathbound (3/2025) by Tracy Deonn 
• Tender Beasts by Liselle Sambury
• Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto
• Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama
• Hunter x Hunter by Yoshihiro Togashi
• Basara by Yumi Tamura
• Sailor Moon by Naoko Takeuchi
• Sugar Sugar Rune by Moyoco Anno
• The Rose of Versailles by Riyoko Ikeda
• Fushigi Yugi by Yuu Watase
• Bleach by Tite Kubo

https://sarahraughley.com/

https://www.instagram.com/s_raughley/

 

Book Chat #20

Rebecca and Tara close out September with what they are currently reading and what they've read since their last book chat.

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Try Not to Be Strange: The Curious History of The Kingdom of Redonda by Michael Hingston
• The Sentence by Louise Erdrich
• Little Moons by Jen Storm
• Not Cancelled: Canadian Caremongering in the Face of Covid-19; Life After Loss: Reflections on Moments of Grace and Courage in Grief by Catherine Kenwell
• Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver
• Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain and the Search for a Hidden Past by Brett Popplewell
• The Circle by Katherena Vermette
• Driving the Green Book: A Road Trip Through the Living History of Black Resistance by Alvin Hall

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder by Julia Zarankin
• The Circle; Real Ones by Katherena Vermette
• Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich
• Wild Dogs by Helen Humphreys
• The Women by Kristin Hannah
• The Brickworks by Lucy E.M. Black
• Pay the Piper by George A. Romero, Daniel Kraus
• The River; Burn by Peter Heller

Eden Mills Writers' Festival Wrap-Up

Rebecca and Tara chat about their great day at the annual Eden Mills Writers' Festival in Eden Mills, Ontario.  Check out the link below for the entire day's lineup of authors and titles discussed on the podcast. 

https://edenmillswritersfestival.ca/featured-writers/

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Driving the Green Book: A Road Trip Through the Living History of Black Resistance by Alvin Hall

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• Instagoner (A Bark and Blog Mystery Series) by Sydney Leigh
• God Isn't Here Today by Francine Cunningham
• Tear by Erica McKeen

 

Interview - Hollay Ghadery and Widow Fantasies

Tara talks with Hollay Ghadery, an award-winning Iranian-Canadian multi-genre writer living in rural Ontario on Anishanaabe land. Fuse, her acclaimed memoir of mixed-race identity and mental illness, was published by Guernica Editions' Microland imprint in 2021 and won the 2023 Canadian Bookclub Award for nonfiction/memoir. (Check out Rebecca's interview with Hollay on the January 11, 2023 episode.) Her debut collection of poetry, Rebellion Box, was released with Radiant Press in April 2023. Her short fiction collection, Widow Fantasies, will be released on September 1, 2024, with Gordon Hill Press.

 

Hollay is also the Poet Laureate of Scugog Township as well as the founder of and senior publicist with River Street Writing, a team of creatives who aim to produce and celebrate amazing writers.

 

Books, authors highlighted:

• Brevity: A Flash Fiction Handbook by David Galef
• Through the Sad Wood Our Corpses Will Hang by Ava Farmehri
• Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier
• Anthills of the Savannah by Chinua Achebe
• Cracking India by Bapsi Sidhwa
• The Boulevard by Jerrod Edson
• Poet Bronwen Wallace
• Most of All the Wanting by Amanda Merpaw
• Whylah Falls by George Elliott Clarke
• A Simple Carpenter by David Margoshes
• Author Adele Wiseman
• Off the Tracks: A Meditation on Train Journeys in a Time of No Travel by Pamela Mulloy
• The Years Shall Run Like Rabbits by Ben Berman Ghan
• The Mona Lisa Sacrifice (The Book of Cross #1) by Peter Roman

Publishers:

• Radiant Press https://radiantpress.ca/
• Latitude 46 https://latitude46publishing.com/
• Wolsak & Winn https://www.wolsakandwynn.ca/

Literary Festivals:

• The Word on the Street Toronto https://toronto.thewordonthestreet.ca/
• Eden Mills Writers' Festival https://edenmillswritersfestival.ca/
• The & Festival https://theampersandreview.ca/the-festival-2024
• Wordstock Sudbury https://wordstocksudbury.ca/