Canada Reads Inspired

Rebecca and Tara return with some much anticipated titles from favorite authors, including Lois Lowry, Helen Humphreys, and David Heska Wanbli Weiden.  Spoiler alert for Rebecca's comments about Lowry's latest novel, Building 903. Rebecca (@canadareadsinspired): The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali Diary of a Young Doctor: Notes From the Genocide in Gaza by Ezzideen Shehab Building 903 by Loi...

Tara interviews the perfect guest for the month of October--Australian born and Canadian raised author Jessica Hamilton to discuss her latest novel, The Woods, published by Simon & Schuster, August 2026. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Woods/Jessica-Hamilton/9781668236369 "We Used to Live Here meets The Amityville Horror in this haunting novel about Alice, a frustrated wife and grie...

Tara welcomes Canadian author Aga Maksimowska, whose latest novel, Becalming, Dundurn Press (2026), is a coming-of-age story about premature sexual development and the fall of Communism in Poland. Her stories and essays have been published in Brick, The New Quarterly, Humber Literary Review, White Wall Review, The Globe and Mail, Today’s Parent, and longlisted for the CBC Short Story Prize. https:...

Rebecca and Tara are winding down their summer reading with historical fiction, poetry, memoir, a graphic novel, short stories, and horror. Rebecca: The Archive of Alternate Endings by Lindsey Drager Kill Not the Butterfly by Ken Wyder If I Must Die by Refaat Alareer Solito by Javier Zamora Looking for Frank Wills by Wesley Brown The Choir by Carol M. Cram Unnamed Bones by Lora Senf Tara: The Coll...

Tara welcomes Canadian author Erin Singer to the podcast and they share a lovely chat about romance and family ties in her first novel, Dangerland!  Erin also divulges that she has seen Carrot Top in suburban Las Vegas, which is, apparently, a thing! https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Erin-Singer/234549770 "Nora Ephron meets The Hangover in this screwball romantic comedy and family drama wit...

Tara welcomes Canadian (Nova Scotia) author Corinne Hoebers to discuss her latest novel, Tethered Spirits: Wiaqtaqne'wasultijik na Kjijaqmijinaq, OC Publishing, 2025. Corinne explains how she worked with the Mi'kmaq community to ensure historical accuracy while also telling the story of her own 1753 settlers of Lunenburg ancestors. From Goodreads: "Against the violent backdrop of the French and In...

Tara is joined by Canadian author JoAnn McCaig and they discuss her latest novel, Beneficiary, published in May 2026 by University of Calgary Press. https://shelflifebooks.ca/item/r5ypYwSBQz_hNTMssW3i2g "Seren was doomed to a country club cage and a leash of pearls until out of the blue on a Tuesday night in 1969, she found herself suddenly saying "no." More than fifty years later, she looks back...

Rebecca is excited to chat with Canadian author Théodora Armstrong about her debut novel, Welcome to Sunny Town, published by Freehand Books in May 2026.  https://freehand-books.com/product/welcome-to-sunny-town/#tab-description : In this striking debut novel, a young artist rashly moves overseas to teach ESL and to find herself, and gets more — and less — than she bargained for. It’s the turn of...

Rebecca and Tara are back with their monthly book chat in which they share a few of their latest best reads. Rebecca's month was not as enjoyable as she had hoped, but Tara ends on a high note with a five-star recommendation!   Rebecca: Solito by Javier Zamora Black Out Loud: The Revolutionary History of Black Comedy from Vaudeville to ‘90s Sitcoms by Geoff Bennett The Peace Thieves by Brent Van S...

CANADA READS INSPIRED 2026 SUMMER READING BINGO CHALLENGE: Rebecca and Tara have filled in the boxes with books they’ve read or that are on their TBR (the Bingo card and list of titles will be pinned to Rebecca and Tara’s Instagram accounts) The Challenge will begin June 5 and run through September 5, 2026 When you complete a bingo line, dm Rebecca (@canadareadsinspired) or Tara (@onabranchreads)...

Rebecca and Tara go down rabbit holes that include a 50,000 couplet epic poem, graveyards, and a blood-sucking lamprey that is found in all five Great Lakes. Don't forget to join the Canada Reads Inspired Summer Reading Bingo Challenge beginning June 5, 2026.  Check out their YouTube live (6/5/26 at 10 am EDT) for more details: https://www.youtube.com/@canadareadsinspired Rebecca (@canadareadsinsp...

Rebecca and Tara are back with their (mostly) monthly book chat in which they share their favorite recent reads.  Rebecca provides a teaser for their next Rabbit Holes podcast and Tara shares her love for author Jenny Lawson and her taxidermy menagerie. Rebecca: Black Out Loud: The Revolutionary History of Black Comedy from Vaudeville to ‘90s Sitcoms by Geoff Bennett Pennies by Lora Senf Run Away...

Rebecca welcomes Dr. Nora Gold to the podcast to discuss her latest work, Doubles, a novella published by Guernica Editions in May 2026, as well as the importance and relevance of novellas in the literary canon. https://guernicaeditions.com/en-us/products/doubles "Doubles takes place in 1968 in an institution for troubled youth, and is told from the perspective of a brilliant, spunky, 12-year-old...

Tara sits down for a chat with Canadian author Alison Gadsby, a first-generation Canadian living in Tkaronto, about her debut collection of short stories, Breathing Is How Some People Stay Alive, published by Guernica Editions in spring 2026. https://guernicaeditions.com/en-us/products/breathing-is-how-some-people-stay-alive "Breathing Is How Some People Stay Alive blurs the lines between horror,...

Rebecca and Tara cover CBC's 2026 Canada Reads DAY THREE debate. Less surprises perhaps, but more great content!   Join them live on Thursday, 4/16/26 @ 11:30am EDT on their YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@canadareadsamericanstyle/streams Their good friend Jolene, from Bookworm Adventure Girl, will be joining them to discuss the final day of this year's competition in which the ONE BOOK...

Rebecca is back from vacation and she and Tara discuss CBC's 2026 Canada Reads DAY TWO debate.  Listen to Tara's DAY ONE wrap up on her Instagram live: @onabranchreads. https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2026-contenders-9.7040200 : Filmmaker and actor Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers champions A Minor Chorus by Billy-Ray Belcourt Hockey YouTube personality and podcaster Steve (Dangl...

Tara welcomes back Canadian author Finnian Burnett to discuss their latest novella-in-flash, Redshirts Sometimes Survive. https://offtopicpublishing.com/product/redshirts-sometimes-survive-by-finnian-burnett/?srsltid=AfmBOoqqrDjkjomUw5LV1p4n7BFWy7-l2RrTh5Ty2L2VoSYamvlByFX8 "A neglected boy clings to an action figure like a lifeline. A trans man meets his childhood hero. An introvert finally finds...

Rebecca and Tara discuss their impressions of the 2026 CBC's Canada Reads books and defenders for this year's debate. Don't forget to check out Rebecca's interview with author Tyler Hellard and Searching for Terry Punchout on February 10, 2026. https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2026-contenders-9.7040200 https://www.cbc.ca/books/thenextchapter   If you have any comments or...

Rebecca is excited to chat with Canadian author Leslie Shimotakahara about her latest novel, The Breakwater, which will be published by Cormorant Books in April 2026. https://www.cormorantbooks.com/Books/T/The-Breakwater "One morning in Toronto, Cathy Matsumoto’s father, Yasuo, calls to announce he intends to visit a dying cousin in British Columbia. Cathy’s never heard of this mysterious relative...

It's Book Chat time! Rebecca had a meh reading month and Tara crushed it!!  Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Director's Choice: Flint Institute of Arts by Tracee J. Glab Poets and Pahlevans: A Journey into the Heart of Iran; Walls: Travels Along the Barricades by Marcello Di Cintio Lost: Amelia Earhart's Three Mysterious Deaths and One Extraordinary Life by Rachel Hartigan Tara (@onabranchread...

Rebecca and Tara have an announcement!!   Instagram: @canadareadsamericanstyle @onabranchreads

Rebecca and Tara introduce a new feature for the podcast in which books they've read prompted them to do a deeper dive into some aspect of the subject or story, in other words, they went down a rabbit hole. They kick off the inaugural episode discussing Run Towards the Danger: Confrontations with a Body of Memory by Sarah Polley and Walls: Travels Along the Barricades by Marcello Di Cintio. Instag...

Rebecca is excited to chat with Canadian author Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson about his second book in the Patrick Bird Mystery series; the first is The Road to Heaven, published by Dundurn Press in 2024. Opposite Sully's Gym, book two, is available beginning March 31, 2026. Dundurn Press: https://www.dundurn.com/books_/t22117/a9781459755888-opposite-sully-s-gym "A missing tenant, an irate mother-in-...

Tara chats with Canadian author, blogger, and podcaster Kerry Clare to discuss her latest novel, Definitely Thriving, which is available March 17, 2026 from House of Anansi Press: https://houseofanansi.com/products/definitely-thriving?srsltid=AfmBOopZcn9yxB5pt-vRIlt94svRdfoXKN-f9wWfX41Q0InAKyLHhN4S "After accidentally-on-purpose exploding her listless marriage by being discovered in bed with the n...

Tara sits down with Iranian-Canadian author Hollay Ghadery to discuss her first novel, The Unravelling of Ou, published by Palimpsest Press in February 2026. Later in the interview, Hollay talks about poetry and how best to read it for those who may be new to it. https://palimpsestpress.ca/books/the-unravelling-of-ou-hollay-ghadery/ :  "Moving on is hard. Even harder when it’s from a make-believe...