British Columbia is home to countless acclaimed authors across genres going back centuries. Lee Maracle, E. Pauline Johnson, Wayson Choy, Malcolm Lowry, Douglas Coupland, Emily St. John Mandel, Gabor Maté, Jen Sookfong Lee, and William Gibson are just a few of the major voices who have called B.C. home at one time or another.
As a new year gets underway, there are many books from B.C. authors to look forward to, across genres and for all ages. What will you be reading in 2025?
Searching for Serafim: The Life and Legacy of Serafim “Joe” Fortes
By Ruby Smith Díaz, January 28, 2025
Vancouver Island poet and artist Ruby Smith Díaz pushes back against white colonial perspectives on history in this creative nonfiction biography of Vancouver’s first lifeguard, an icon of Canada’s Black history. Weaving together archival records, poetry, and speculative narration, Díaz recounts the story of Serafim Fortes while challenging the very idea of official histories.
Buzzkill Clamshell
By Amber Dawn, March 11, 2025
Novelist, memoirist, and poet Amber Dawn returns with a new collection of poems that subvert expectations, exploring chronically pained bodies as sources of feminine power. With a playful, twisted, dark, and kinky candour, Dawn plays with traditional images of aging, queerness, disability, desire, and sickness, turning them on their heads to mine new sources of pleasure, hope, and strength.
The Last Exile
By Sam Wiebe, March 25, 2025
Private eye Dave Wakefield is on a new case in Sam Wiebe’s latest mystery in his ongoing Vancouver-set series. When defence attorney Shuzhen Chen calls in a favour, Wakeland has to face off against the notorious Exiles motorcycle gang in an attempt to prove the innocence of a single mother accused of killing their leader and his wife in this thrilling new chapter in the beloved series.
The Tiger and the Cosmonaut
By Eddy Boudel Tan, April 29, 2025
When his father briefly goes missing, Casper Han travels from Vancouver to his hometown in rural B.C. Once there, he and his siblings must finally confront the trauma surrounding an unsolved family mystery: the childhood disappearance of Casper’s twin brother, Sam. Combining noir suspense and an exploration of the immigrant experience in Canada, The Tiger and the Cosmonaut will surely be a conversation starter.
Amaranthine Chevrolet
By Dennis E. Bolen, May 13, 2025
Set in 1960s Saskatchewan, Amaranthine Chevrolet is something of a modern, offbeat retelling of Homer’s Odyssey. Travelling west across farmland on unmapped roads to steer clear of police, a teen boy in an antique pickup makes his way home. Along the way, he witnesses signs of a rapidly changing world as he interacts with hippies, drifters, farmers, and anyone else he may happen upon along his route.
Go, Sloth, Go!
Written by Gabrielle Prendergast, illustrated by Sophie Benmouyal, May 13, 2025
Go, Sloth, Go! is sure to be entertaining, moving, and educational for young children. When a sloth is blown from a tree, he must begin the very slow process of getting back to his home. Luckily, he has a helpful truck driver on his side who makes the journey with him in this heartfelt tale about an animal and his natural habitat.
Fishes of the Strait of Georgia
By Dick Beamish and Jeff Marliave, Fall 2025
Living on the coast, it’s easy to take for granted the rich diversity of wildlife right next to us, if not immediately visible from the shore. In this book, two fish scientists turn their eyes to the Strait of Georgia, one of the world’s great fish habitats. Looking at over 200 species, these experts shed light on the physical and social characteristics of each species as well as their larger roles throughout history.
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