Summer Reads

AN ECLECTIC COLLECTION OF BOOKS WE HAVE READ, BOOKS THAT ARE PILED ON OUR NIGHTSTANDS, AND BOOKS THAT ARE WAITING PATIENTLY ON OUR WISH LISTS.

A World Of Curiosities

Louise Penny Macmillan Publishers (2022)

“It’s spring and Three Pines is re-emerging after the harsh winter. But not everything buried should come alive again. Not everything lying dormant should re-emerge. But something has” and the eighteenth instalment of this beloved murdermystery series does not disappoint! A bit darker in tone than previous instalments, but fans are eager to once again peek over the shoulder of Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and JeanGuy Beauvoir—along with an eclectic group of characters from the village of Three Pines in Quebec—as the mystery unfolds.

Louise Penny— the author of this #1 New York Times and Globe and Mail bestselling series—lives in a small village south of Montréal. She has won numerous literary awards, and in 2017 received the Order of Canada for her contributions to Canadian culture.

THE MYTH OF NORMAL: TRAUMA, ILLNESS AND HEALING IN A TOXIC CULTURE

Gabor Maté, MD, and Daniel Maté Knopf Canada (2022)

Through his work and international bestsellers, Gabor Maté has changed the way we look at addiction and has played a role in shifting our conversations around ADHD, stress, disease, embodied trauma, and parenting. In The Myth of Normal, cowritten with his son Daniel, the author brings his perspective to the great untangling of common myths about what makes us sick, connects the dots between the maladies of individuals and the declining soundness of society, and offers a compassionate guide for health and healing.

If An Egyptian Cannot Speak English A Novel

Noor Naga Graywolf Press (2022)

Winner for the 2022 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize; Shortlisted for the 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize; Named a Best Book of 2022 by Time, Kirkus, Bookforum, and BuzzFeed

In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, an Egyptian American woman, and a man from the village of Shobrakheit, meet at a café in Cairo. She is a nostalgic daughter of immigrants “returning” to a country she’s never been to before, to teach English. He was a photographer of the revolution, but now finds himself unemployed and addicted to cocaine, living in a rooftop shack. A dark romance begins as the novel exposes the gaps in American identity politics, especially when exported overseas. If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English is at once ravishing and wry, scathing and tender and asks “when the revolution fails, how long can someone survive the disappointment? Who suffers and, more crucially, who gets to tell about it?”

The Sleeping Car Porter

Suzette Mayr

Coach House Books (2022)

The Sleeping Car Porter brings to life an important part of Black history in North America, from the perspective of a queer man living in a culture that renders him invisible in two ways. When a mudslide strands a train, Baxter, a queer Black sleeping car porter, must contend with the perils of white passengers, ghosts, and his secret love affair. Affecting, imaginative, and visceral enough that you’ll feel the rocking of the train, Porter’s novel is a stunning accomplishment.

Winner of the 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize; Oprah Daily: 15 Books to Read by the Fire; The Globe 100: Best books of 2022; CBC Books: Best Canadian Fiction of 2022

LOVE, PAMELA

Pamela Anderson

Harper Collins (2023)

Having recently returned to renovate her childhood home and property in Ladysmith, Vancouver Island born Pamela Anderson is reclaiming the narrative of her life in the pages of this memoir and the recent Netflix release of Pamela, A Love Story chronicling her life.

In her book, the actress, activist, and once infamous Playboy Playmate defies expectation in both content and approach, blending searing prose with snippets of original poetry. In this sometimes brutally honest book, Anderson breaks the mold of the celebrity memoir and offers a different view of her life from the ones that have been crafted by others about her for decades.

THE BOY, THE MOLE, THE FOX AND THE HORSE

Charlie Mackesy

Ebury Press (2019)

This delightfully heart-warming book from British illustrator, artist, and author Charlie Mackesy chronicles a journey of friendship for all ages as it explores life’s universal lessons. A #1 bestseller this small treasure is described by Elizabeth Egan of the New York Times as “not only a thought-provoking, discussion-worthy story, but the book itself is an object of art” and was recently turned into an animated short film available on Apple TV.

Lessons In Chemistry

Bonnie Garmus Doubleday (2022)

Set in 1960s California, we follow chemist Elizabeth Zott as she becomes the reluctant star of a popular cooking show which she takes in an unexpected direction with her unusual approach to cooking... “combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride.” #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, Heather’s Picks on Chapters-Indigo Books raves that the tale is “laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters as original and vibrant as its protagonist.”

FIVE LITTLE

Indians

Michelle Good

HarperCollins (2020)

With compassion and insight this award-winning book by Cree writer and lawyer Michelle Good, chronicles the desperate quest of residential school survivors Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie, and Maisie as they to come to terms with their past and, ultimately, find a way forward.

A National Bestseller and winner of Canada Reads 2022, the Governor

General’s Literary Award for Fiction, the Amazon First Novel Award, and a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Kitchen Party

Mary Berg Penguin Random House Canada (2019)

Mary Berg—winner of MasterChef Canada Season 3— shares delicious, low-stress recipes, special enough for celebrations and easy enough for a regular Tuesday night. With content and recipes covering menus for Brunch Parties, Cocktail Parties Dinner Parties, Parties of Two, and Special Occasions, the effervescent host of Mary Makes It Easy, and Mary's Kitchen Crush shares over a hundred of her wonderful, straightforward recipes. So far, her Cheats Benny, Herbed Mushroom and Camembert Skillet, and Roasted Napa Cabbage recipes are going into our “keeper” file!

The Marrow Thieves

Cherie Dimaline Cormorant Books (2017)

Accessible for youth and engaging for adults as well, this dystopian novel from Métis Canadian writer Cherie Dimaline, immerses the reader in a futuristic world ravaged by global warming. One of the unforeseen side effects of the crisis includes the loss of people’s ability to dream, and that dreamlessness has led to widespread madness. The only people still able to access their dreams are North America’s indigenous peoples, and it is their very bone marrow that holds the cure for the rest of the world’s population. The gaining of dreams for the others, means the loss of life for the unwilling donors, and Dimaline’s story centres around the struggle of fifteen-year-old Frenchie and his companions as they struggle to survive on the journey north to the old lands; reuniting with loved ones along the way and staying hidden from the

“recruiters” who seek to bring them to the marrow-stealing “factories.”

The Diamond Eye

Kate

Quinn

William

Morrow & Company

(2022)

The New York Times bestselling author of The Rose Code returns with another unforgettable World War II tale, this time of a quiet bookworm who becomes history’s deadliest female sniper. Based on a true story, Hitler’ s invasion of Ukraine and Russia sends history student Mila Pavlichenko on an unexpected path. Handed a rifle and sent to fight, Mila becomes a sniper—a deadly accurate one—whose three hundredth kill earns her the moniker of Lady Death and makes her a national hero.

UNRAVELING:

WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT LIFE WHILE SHEARING SHEEP, DYEING WOOL, AND MAKING THE WORLD’S UGLIEST SWEATER

Peggy Orenstein Harper (2023)

The pandemic led people to undertake many different projects to cope with stress, fear and isolation; some learned to play the ukulele, others baked (with sourdough bread experiencing a major comeback), and many more took to their gardens. Author Peggy Orenstein set out to make a sweater from scratch—shearing, spinning, dyeing wool, and finally knitting—and in the process discovers how we find our deepest selves through craft.

“With her wry voice, sharp intelligence, and exuberant honesty, Orenstein shares her year-long journey as daughter, wife, mother, writer, and maker—and teaches us all something about creativity and connection.”

— Goodreads review

Summer Reads