Introducing: Arts & Lectures
Plus, Q & A with CBC's Quirks & Quarks host Bob McDonald
Dear readers,
I have some exciting news to share with you all today, as well as some fantastic author interviews, including with CBC’s Bob McDonald, but first, some book talk.
I always love the start of a new (reading) season, don’t you? New books hitting the shelves, a promise of a new beloved, and a chance to try something new — a new author, a new genre, a new-to-you book.
This Spring list offers a little something for everyone, from historical fiction fans to narrative nonfiction diehards. Plus, it’s always exciting to open yourself up to something completely different, maybe something you wouldn’t normally choose. That’s what I love about book clubs — selected reading lists can be as diverse as its members. I often find myself reading books that I would not have found myself, or even at times, dismissed for any number of reasons, including ‘it’s not what I usually read’.
So with this in mind I’ve curated a book list for you ranging in theme and style, genre and category, with the hope that maybe you’ll venture out of your comfort zone and try something new.
Book Recommendations
If you liked On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, try Martyr!
On Earthy We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong. A shattering portrait of a family, a first love, and the redemptive power of storytelling. With stunning urgency and grace, Vuong writes of people caught between disparate worlds, and asks how we heal and rescue one another without forsaking who we are. The question of how to survive, and how to make of it a kind of joy, powers the most important debut novel of many years.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. A newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, guided by the voices of artists, poets, and kings, embarks on a remarkable search for a family secret that leads him to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum. Electrifying, funny, and wholly original, Martyr! heralds the arrival of an essential new voice in contemporary fiction.
If you liked The Giver of Stars, you might like Finding Flora.
Finding Flora by Elinor Florence. A rollicking historical novel set in turn-of-the-century Alberta about a young woman on the run from her abusive husband who uses a legal loophole to claim a homestead in the Wild West.
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes. A breathtaking story of five extraordinary women and their remarkable journey through the mountains of Kentucky and beyond in Depression-era America.
If you liked Good Material, try Nobody Asked for This.
Good Material by Dolly Alderton. In this sharply funny and exquisitely relatable account of romantic disaster and friendship, Alderton offers up a love story with two endings, demonstrating once again why she is one of the most exciting writers today and the true voice of a generation.
Nobody Asked for This by Georgia Toews. A razor-sharp dramedy following a twenty-something comic as she navigates family grief, dysfunctional friendship, and a date gone very wrong.
If you liked On Tyranny, you might like Autocracy Inc.
On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder. A guide for surviving and resisting America’s turn towards authoritarianism, On Tyranny is a call to arms and a guide to resistance, with invaluable ideas for how we can preserve our freedoms in the uncertain years to come.
Autocracy Inc. by Anne Applebaum. From the Pulitzer-prize winning, New York Times bestselling author, an alarming account of how autocracies work together to undermine the democratic world, and how we should organize to defeat them.
If you liked The Wager, try The Wide Wide Sea.
The Wager by David Grann. A page-turning story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on The Wager, showing that it was not only the captain and crew who ended up on trial, but the very idea of empire.
The Wide Wide Sea by Hampton Sides. A thrilling account of the most momentous voyage of the Age of Exploration, which culminated in Captain James Cook’s death in Hawaii, and left a complex and controversial legacy still debated to this day.
If you are local to Creemore, ON or Stratford, ON all of the above mentioned books are available for order and/or purchase through Curiosity House Books. All books can be ordered and/or purchased through your local independent bookstore. Find your local here.
Arts & Lectures
And in the vein of starting something new, I’m very excited to announce a new bookish venture I’ve recently embarked on. Under the name Stratford Arts & Lectures, I will be curating engaging literary programming hosting onstage conversations and carefully crafted events with authors, critics, and cultural figures. We will be exploring the creative process, ideas, and our relationships to the world around us. Our hope is to continue to bring readers and writers together.
To begin, I’ve partnered with the charming boutique hotel The Bruce in Stratford, Ontario to offer a new literary series. Our first two events are with bestselling authors Nita Prose and Martha Hall Kelly.
The plan is to host monthly book and author events, accessible to all readers, in a variety of venues. Stay tuned for new events being announced. You can subscribe to our newsletter here.
To purchase tickets to the Nita Prose event, please click here.
To purchase tickets to the Martha Hall Kelly event, please click here.
We are delighted to bring you two new interviews today. The first is with bestselling author and host of the CBC show Quirks & Quarks Bob McDonald. The second interview is with author Michelle Hébert on writing her first book.
Why I Write
Bob McDonald has been the host of CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks since 1992. He is a regular science commentator on CBC News Network and science correspondent for CBC TV’s The National. He has been honoured with the 2001 Michael Smith Award for science promotion from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, as well as the 2002 Sandford Fleming Medal from the Royal Canadian Institute for Science, and the 2005 McNeil Medal for the public awareness of science from the Royal Society of Canada. In November 2011, McDonald was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. He is the recipient of thirteen honorary doctorates and, in 2014, asteroid 332324 was officially named BOBMCDONALD in his honour.
My First Book
Michelle Hébert grew up on the beaches and marshes of Cumberland County, Nova Scotia. She has an MFA in Creative Nonfiction, degrees in journalism and social work, and she studies tarot on the side. Her writing about mental health, social justice, and finding joy where it seems there's none to be had has appeared in Writerly magazine and in audio essays and short documentaries for CBC Radio. Her first book, Enriched by Catastrophe: Social Work and Social Conflict After the Halifax Explosion, was published in 2009. Michelle has lived across Canada but makes her home in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Mi'kma'ki), with several cats, a dog, and her two adult children. You can find more of her writing (and pictures of her cats) at
And in case you missed it…
Why I Write
Martha Baillie lives and works in Toronto. Her novel The Incident Report was longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and is being made into a feature film to be released in 2023. The Search for Heinrich Schlögel was an Oprah editors' pick. Sister Language
Upcoming Event
And in just two weeks time, we are hosting the incredible Claire Cameron in Creemore, Ontario for Beer & Books. We will be discussing her new memoir, How To Survive a Bear Attack.
To purchase tickets to the Claire Cameron event, please click here.
And a note…
If you are a paid subscriber or a Founding Member, please watch your inbox. I will be emailing you your personalized book recommendations shortly. And for Founding Members, it’s that time of year again: free gift book - Spring edition.
As well, I have some book-related news of my own to share soon, and will be doing this in a paid subscriber post.
Thank you for reading.