news | Thursday April 18, 2024

April 23 is BC Book Day!

April 23 is BC Book Day, a day to celebrate the incredible books, magazines, and literary works that come out of our province. We are grateful for the community of creatives in BC, and for all of the amazing authors, illustrators, publishers, and literary events that make our creative landscape so rich and varied. If you’re also feeling appreciation for our incredible literary community, on BC Book Day especially, we encourage you to show some love to your favourite local library, book store, author, illustrator, or publisher. Happy BC Book Day!

news | Monday April 15, 2024

Song & Dread in the Tyee

The Tyee recently put out an article about poetry books written by award-winning poets that contend meaningfully with grief, and use the written word to reflect, process, and reveal their experiences with it. The collections featured are Song & Dread by Otoniya J. Okot Bitek, Midway by Kayla Czaga, Teeth by Dallas Hunt, and Talking to Strangers by Rhea Tregebov.

Read the article here to learn more about these titles and to read excerpts from each collection.

news | Monday April 15, 2024

Celebrate Independent Bookstore Day!

April 27 is Independent Bookstore Day! Independent bookstores are such important spaces in our cities. Ask any independent publishers or local authors and they’ll tell you: independent bookstores are an incredible and irreplaceable part of our creative ecosystems. More than mere retail spaces, inthey’re hubs of community and connection. We’re fortunate in Vancouver to have so many unique and remarkable independent bookstores to visit. We hope you celebrate Independent Bookstore Day on the 27 by stopping by your local favourite bookshop. We’ll see you there!

news | Sunday April 14, 2024

Sage Birchwater Reviews Lha yudit'ih We Always Find A Way

Sage Birchwater reviewed Lha yudit’ih We Always Find A Way by Lorraine Weir with Chief Roger William.

From the review:

“That’s what Lha yudit’ih: We Always Find A Way is all about.

It’s the story of resistance and the string of remarkable victories against all odds that the Xeni Gwet’in and Tsilhqot’in people have been able to celebrate time after time. It contains stories of mythology and spiritual belief.”

Read the complete review here in the British Columbia Review.

news | Friday April 12, 2024

Tonight! Join us for the Launch of Gaman – Perseverance by Art Miki!

Tonight! Join us in the Ellipse Lobby at the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre to celebrate the launch of Gaman – Perseverance: Japanese Canadians’ Journey to Justice by Art Miki! Enjoy a reading from Gaman – Perseverance as well as a conversation between Art Miki and Lisa Uyeda, Collections Manager at the Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre.

Gaman – Perseverance is an in-depth memoir detailing the intense negotiations that took place in the 1980s between the Government of Canada and the NAJC – negotiations which finally resulted in the historic Japanese Canadian Redress Agreement of September 1988 and the acknowledgment by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney that Canada had wronged its own citizens. In Gaman – Perseverance, Art Miki recollects his past experiences and family history, revealing the beliefs and attitudes that shaped his life’s journey as a youth in British Columbia, an educator in Manitoba, and a community leader across Canada.

Mr. Art Miki is an active leader in the Japanese Canadian community, having served as president of the National Association of Japanese Canadians from 1984 to 1992. He led the negotiations to achieve a just redress settlement for Japanese Canadians interned during World War II. For his efforts nationally, provincially, and locally, he has received this country’s highest recognition, the Order of Canada, the Order of Manitoba, and recently, the Order of the Rising Sun from the government of Japan. He is past-president of the Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba and the Asian Heritage Society of Manitoba. Art is a former teacher and principal, a Canadian Citizenship Judge, and a lecturer at the University of Winnipeg.

Attendance is free! Seating is first-come, first-served. Light refreshments will be available. We can’t wait to see you there!

The Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre is wheelchair and scooter accessible.

Gaman – Perseverance Launch
Ellipse Lobby, Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre
6688 Southoaks Crescent
Burnaby, BC
April 12, 2024
Doors open at 6:30 p.m.; the event begins at 7:00 p.m.

This event is made possible by the Canadian Race Relations Foundation. Thank you to the Canadian Race Relations Foundation and our venue partner, Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre.

news | Friday April 12, 2024

Wet Reviewed in Cha

Marsha McDonald reviewed Wet, the latest collection of poetry and photography from Leanne Dunic, in Cha!

From the article:

“Wet is a poem epic in length, powerfully cautionary, a hybrid blend of fantasy, fiction, memoir, lyric, and street photography.”

Read the complete review here.

news | Friday April 12, 2024

A Family of Dreamers Named a Finalist for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize

We are delighted that Samantha Nock’s debut book A Family of Dreamers was named a finalist for the 2024 Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize! A Family of Dreamers weaves together threads of fat liberation, desirability politics, and heartbreak while working through her existence as a young Indigenous woman coming of age in the city. The result is a love song to northern cuzzins, dive bars, and growing up.

Our most heartfelt congratulations, Samantha!

news | Wednesday April 10, 2024

Three Talonbooks Authors on League of Canadian Poets Prize Longlists

We are so pleased to see three Talonbooks authors make the longlists for the League of Canadian Poets Prizes!

A Family of Dreamers by Samantha Nock and No Town Called We by Nikki Reimer have been longlisted for the Pat Lowther Memorial Award!

No Town Called We by Nikki Reimer and Spells, Wishes, and the Talking Dead:ᒪᒪᐦᑖᐃᐧᓯᐃᐧᐣ ᐸᑯᓭᔨᒧᐤ ᓂᑭᐦᒋ ᐋᓂᐢᑯᑖᐹᐣ mamahtâwisiwin, pakosêyimow, nikihci-âniskotâpân by Wanda John-Kehewin have been longlisted for the Raymond Souster Award!

These three collections are works of poetic excellence and we are delighted to see them on these longlists. A huge congratulations to Samantha, Nikki, and Wanda, and to all of the long-listed authors! View the complete lists here.

news | Wednesday April 10, 2024

Lha yudit’ih We Always Find A Way Reviewed in the Vancouver Sun

Tom Sandborn reviewed the community oral history Lha yudit’ih We Always Find A Way by Lorraine Weir with Chief Roger William in the Vancouver Sun.

From the review:

“This splendid book belongs in every school library in Canada, and on the bookshelves of anyone interested in the truth and reconciliation process.”

Read the complete article here.

news | Tuesday April 9, 2024

A Taste of Empire Reviewed

Jovanni Sy’s amazing play A Taste of Empire was reviewed on Canadiancookbooks.ca! In A Taste of Empire, delectable samples from a real-time cooking demonstration offer food for thought about colonialism and the ethics of modern-day food systems.

From the review:

“Sy’s vivid descriptions of dishes, flavors, and cooking techniques create a sensory experience that immerses the audience in the world of the play. The use of food as a narrative device is not only innovative but also adds a layer of accessibility that resonates with a diverse audience.”

Check out the complete review here.