Rebecca is excited to speak with Korean Canadian author Jinwoo Park. Born and raised in Seoul, he has lived in various parts of North America and the UK since the age of 11 and is now based in Montreal. Jinwoo obtained his bachelor’s degree from McGill in 2013, followed by a master’s in political economics from the London School of Economics in 201…

Welcome to the latest episode of Hidden Gems in which Rebecca and Tara invite guests to recommend authors or titles that may be new to us. Rebecca is excited to introduce author Marion Agnew whose debut novel, Making Up the Gods, from Latitude 46 Publishing, was released in October, 2023. Kirkus Reviews calls it “A complex, heart-warming tale of lo…

Rebecca is excited to interview Canadian author Caitlin Galway on this latest episode. Caitlin is a novelist and short fiction writer whose work can be classified as literary realism, surrealism, and magical realism. A Song for Wildcats, her new short story collection published by Dundurn Press, has been named an Indigo Best Book of 2025, and was f…

Tara welcomes Alma Sarai, a Canadian artist, actor, musician, and arts advocate, to promote Tottering Biped Theatre's summer production of "The Complete Works of Shakespeare (abridged)" at Dundurn Castle Park in Hamilton, ON in August 2025. Alma graduated from the Theatre and Drama Studies program at the University of Toronto Mississauga, a joint p…

Join Rebecca and Tara as they review the progress they've made (or not) on their 2025 reading goals. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Currently reading: A Lost Lady by Willa Cather 2025 Goals: Complete Anne of Green Gables and The Chronicles of Narnia series and read more Redwall; read children's books that have "mischievous, clever, independen…

Rebecca is excited to speak with Pakistani-Canadian author Saad Omar Khan about his debut novel, Drinking the Ocean, published by Wolsak & Wynn in 2025. Saad was born in the United Arab Emirates to Pakistani parents and lived in the Philippines, Hong Kong, and South Korea before immigrating to Canada. He is a graduate of the University of Toronto a…

Rebecca and Tara share their latest vacation highlights as well as their favorite reads over the past month. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): https://www.thehenryford.org/ A Song for Wildcats: Stories by Caitlin Galway Stella's Carpet by Lucy E.M. Black Oxford Soju Club by Jinwoo Park A Psalm for the Wild-Built; A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Be…

Rebecca is excited to speak with Chinese-Canadian author Su Chang. Su was born and raised in Shanghai and is the daughter of a former and reluctant Red Guard leader, which was the paramilitary arm of Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution beginning in the 1960s. Today, they will be talking about her debut novel, The Immortal Woman, published by House of …

Rebecca and Tara introduce a new feature, Sharing Our Shelves, that may appear again from time to time in which they each review the other's To Be Read shelf and pick their co-host's next book to read. Rebecca selected Tear by Erica McKeen for Tara and Tara selected Stella's Carpet by Lucy E.M. Black for Rebecca. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle)…

Tara chats with author Harman Burns, a Saskatchewan-born trans woman, writer, filmmaker, and sound artist. Her work has been published in Rebelle Zine, Untethered Magazine, and Metatron Press, and her story “Among Strange Machines” was shortlisted for the Far Horizons Award for Short Fiction. Her debut novella, Yellow Barks Spider was published in …

Rebecca and Tara are finally back after a six-week break with lots of great titles to share! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): One of Ours by Willa Cather Oxford Soju Club by Jinwoo Park King Leary by Paul Quarrington Pay Dirt by Sara Paretsky Looking for Smoke by K.A. Cobell Blue Horses by Mary Oliver If I Wanted a Boat" "Watering the Stones" "…

Tara chats with author Joanne Jackson about Canadian Prairie authors. Saskatchewan Hidden Gems: --Beatrice and Virgil; The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel --Life on the Refrigerator Door; Polly Diamond series by Alice Kuipers --Going to Beautiful; Russell Quant Mysteries by Anthony Bidulka --Snake in the Raspberry Patch by Joanne Jackson …

Rebecca is joined by friend of the podcast Zeralda to answer the Five Questions for Reader Repartee: How did you become a reader? What book do you wish you could read again for the first time? Which author, living or dead, would you like to meet in person and why? What fictional character would you like to meet and why? What are you currently readi…

Rebecca and Tara again welcome host Ali Hassan for their annual wrap up of the CBC’s Canada Reads debates! https://standupali.com/ https://standupali.com/my-book https://www.instagram.com/standupali Recommended books: American War; What Strange Paradise; One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad A History of Burning by J…

Rebecca and Tara discuss Day THREE of CBC's Canada Reads debates! STILL IN: Dandelion by Jamie Chai Yun Liew; championed by "Pastry Nerd" Saïd M’Dahoma Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper; championed by actor Michelle Morgan A Two-Spirit Journey by Ma-Nee Chacaby and Mary Louisa Plummer; championed by Indigenous advocate Shayla Stone…

Rebecca and Tara discuss Day TWO of CBC's Canada Reads debates! STILL IN: Dandelion by Jamie Chai Yun Liew; championed by "Pastry Nerd" Saïd M’Dahoma Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper; championed by actor Michelle Morgan Jennie's Boy by Wayne Johnston; championed by author Linwood Barclay A Two-Spirit Journey by Ma-Nee Chacaby and …

Rebecca and Tara discuss Day One of CBC's Canada Reads debates! Dandelion by Jamie Chai Yun Liew; championed by "Pastry Nerd" Saïd M’Dahoma Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper; championed by actor Michelle Morgan Jennie's Boy by Wayne Johnston; championed by author Linwood Barclay A Two-Spirit Journey by Ma-Nee Chacaby and Mary Louis…

Rebecca and Tara share their latest good reads AND make their final predictions for CBC's 2025 Canada Reads debates which begin on Monday, March 17. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice by Tommie Smith and Derrick Barnes; illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile Wake: The Hidd…

Rebecca and Tara share some of their favorite books that others have recommended to them AND they wonder if they have convinced you to read any of their recommendations. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall; illustrated by Hugo Martinez Stories Left in Stone: Trails and Traces in C…

Rebecca and Tara have come up with a new feature for the podcast called, “Hidden Gems with…”. In which they ask authors to share their top book recommendations. Rebecca is excited to kick off the inaugural episode with Sheena Kamal and her Crime Fiction picks! Sheena is an author, essayist, and screenwriter. She wrote the critically acclaimed Nora …

Tara chats with Joanne Jackson, an award-winning author of three novels: The Wheaton (2019); A Snake in the Raspberry Patch (2023), winner of the Crime Writers of Canada's Best Crime Novel set in Canada and short listed for the Saskatchewan Book Awards; and her latest novel Sunset Lake Resort (2024) published by Stonehouse Publishing. Regardless of…

Rebecca and Tara chat about their latest reads, some of which include CBC's Canada Reads titles for the 2025 debates airing March 17-20 on CBC TV, CBC Radio, and CBC Books (website and YouTube). Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): How We Move the Air by Garnett Kilberg Cohen Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper American War; What Str…

Rebecca and Tara celebrate some of their favorite Love Stories in all their different forms in honor of Valentine's Day. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Anne of Windy Poplars by L.M. Montgomery Bob by Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead Cam & Beau by Maria Cichosz The Magic of Ordinary Days by Ann Howard Creel https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-magic…

Rebecca is excited to speak with author Dr. Louise Ells. Louise is the author of Lies I Told My Sister, published in 2024 by Latitude 46 Publishing. She was born and raised in Northeastern Ontario. After years of travel, she moved to Cambridge, England where she earned her PhD in Creative Writing. Louise teaches at universities and colleges in Engl…

Tara is excited to chat with Adelle Purdham, who is an educator, parent disability advocate and author of the memoir-in-essays I Don't Do Disability and Other Lies I've Told Myself published by Dundurn Press in 2024. It was named a Fall 2024 Most Anticipated Memoir & Biography by Indigo and 49th Shelf. Her prose and poetry appear in literary journa…

Rebecca and Tara discuss CBC's Canada Reads Short List, how well they did in selecting what would make the short list, and who they predict will win based on the slightest amount of research possible and their gut feelings. https://www.cbc.ca/books/meet-the-canada-reads-2025-contenders-1.7431920 The Contenders: Olympic gold medalist Maggie Mac Neil…

Rebecca and Tara are back for their first book chat of 2025! They share the titles they've read recently and want to recommend. Stay tuned to the end where a bit of CBC's Canada Reads pops into the discussion. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Anne of the Island (Anne of Green Gables) by L.M. Montgomery Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh A Psalm…

Rebecca is excited to speak with Canadian author Erin Steele. Her queer coming-of-age and addiction memoir, Sunrise over Half-Built Houses: Love, Longing and Addiction in Suburbia (Caitlin Press) was published in Canada in 2024 and will be available in the US on February 21, 2025. Erin also writes “On Being Human” on Substack. She was a 2022 Writin…

The day everyone has been waiting for!! CBC Books has released the long list for the 2025 Canada Reads debates and Rebecca and Tara offer their predictions for the five books that will compete for the title! Tara suggests at the end that their predictions are submitted as a podcast rather than as two individuals. It seems they are looking to raise …

Happy New Year!! Rebecca and Tara sum up their 2024 goals and introduce their reading goals for 2025! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): 2024: Brothers Grimm; Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur; Inclusive Picture Book Challenge; 12 classic women authors 2025: Complete Anne of Green Gables and The Chronicles of Na…

As Rebecca and Tara close out 2024 and a great year of reading, they share their Top Ten list of books! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Ginny Ross Series by Heather Stemp: Amelia & Me; Under Amelia’s Wing; Beyond Amelia The Street by Ann Petry My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton Sisters of the Spruce by Leslie Sh…

Rebecca and Tara have lots of books to share since their last book chat! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Lady Sings the Blues by Billie Holliday The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain Skid Dogs by Emelia Symington-Fedy The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry The Pearl by John Stei…

Tara shares her holiday reading list! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Precious Cargo: My Year of Driving the Kids on School Bus 3077 by Craig Davidson Recollections of My Nonexistence: A Memoir by Rebecca Solnit Passing by Nella Larsen The Street by Ann Petry Tara (@onabranchreads): The Queen by Nick Cutter The Saturday Night Ghost Club; Rust …

Rebecca and Tara shared their Top Ten Canadian Books of the 21st Century on YouTube Live on August 24, 2024 but decided they wanted to share additional authors and titles that they highly recommend. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Recollections of My Nonexistence by Rebecca Solnit The Pearl by John Steinbeck Pay No Heed to the Rockets: Palesti…

Rebecca is back from a two-week road trip and shares her stops along the way and only two books. Tara, on the other hand, had a great month of reading! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Loudmouth Books: https://loudmouthindy.com/ / https://www.instagram.com/loudmouthindy/ President Benjamin Harrison House: https://bhpsite.org/ Abraham Lincoln Pr…

Rebecca is excited to chat with author Brett Popplewell about his latest book, Outsider: An Old Man, a Mountain and the Search for a Hidden Past. Brett is an author and journalist who joined Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication in 2017. His articles have been recognized by the National Magazine Awards Foundation in best shor…

Tara chats with author Sydney Leigh about her latest novel, Instagoner, published on August 27, 2024 by Level Best Books; it is the first book in the Bark and Blog Mystery series. When lifestyle blogger Emily finds the body of the local controversial talk show host who also happens to be her arch-nemesis, she enlists the help of her online audience…

Tara interviews author Sarah Raughley about her trilogy, The Bones of Ruin (The Bones of Ruin, The Song of Wrath, The Lady of Rapture), as well as her new novel, The Queen's Spade, out January 14, 2025. Sarah grew up in southern Ontario writing stories about freakish little girls with powers because she secretly wanted to be one. She is a huge fang…

Rebecca and Tara close out September with what they are currently reading and what they've read since their last book chat. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Try Not to Be Strange: The Curious History of The Kingdom of Redonda by Michael Hingston The Sentence by Louise Erdrich Little Moons by Jen Storm Not Cancelled: Canadian Caremongering in th…

Rebecca and Tara chat about their great day at the annual Eden Mills Writers' Festival in Eden Mills, Ontario. Check out the link below for the entire day's lineup of authors and titles discussed on the podcast. https://edenmillswritersfestival.ca/featured-writers/ Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Driving the Green Book: A Road Trip Through the…

Tara talks with Hollay Ghadery, an award-winning Iranian-Canadian multi-genre writer living in rural Ontario on Anishanaabe land. Fuse, her acclaimed memoir of mixed-race identity and mental illness, was published by Guernica Editions' Microland imprint in 2021 and won the 2023 Canadian Bookclub Award for nonfiction/memoir. (Check out Rebecca's int…

Rebecca and Tara share their latest good reads! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson Golden Boys: The Winnipeg Falcons of 1920 by Paul Keery; illustrated by Michael Wyatt https://shop.teachmag.com/collections/frontpage/products/golden-boys-the-winnipeg-falcons-of-1920 Project 562: Chang…

Rebecca and Tara highlight books they've read in which the location or place is a distinct character in the novel. Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): True Gretch: What I've Learned About Life, Leadership, and Everything in Between by Governor Gretchen Whitmer Widow Fantasies by Hollay Ghadery Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez / Scarborough, Onta…

Tara chats with Canadian Susan Wadds, author of What the Living Do. Winner of the Writer's Union of Canada's Prose Contest in 2016, Susan's award-winning work has appeared in The Blood Pudding, Room, Quagmire, Waterwheel Review, Funicular, WOW--Women on Writing, and many more. The first two chapters of her debut novel, What the Living Do, (Regal Ho…

Rebecca chats with author Michael Redhead Champagne about his first children’s book, We Need Everyone, which premiered with HighWater Press in January 2024. Michael is working towards a revolution that dismantles harmful systems and builds up new ones based on justice, equity and love. A community leader from Winnipeg's North End with family roots …

Rebecca welcomes Katie from Whitehorse, Yukon Canada to answer the Five Reader Repartee Questions. How did you become a reader? What book do you wish you could read again for the first time? Which author, living or dead, would you like to meet in person and why? What fictional character would you like to meet and why? What are you currently reading…

Rebecca chats with the author of Autokrator, Emily A. Weedon. Emily is a debut novelist and a screenwriter from Toronto Canada. Her web series Chateau Laurier was the most awarded web series on the entire planet in 2023 and won a Canadian Screen Award. Her novel Autokrator released by Cormorant Books in April 2024 is already receiving acclaim for i…

Rebecca interviews author Marion Agnew. Marion is a dual US/Canadian citizen, who moved north mid-life, after a career in technical writing and editing. MAKING UP THE GODS (Latitude 46, Sudbury, 2023) is her first novel. Her previous book, REVERBERATIONS: A DAUGHTER’S MEDITATIONS ON ALZHEIMER’S (Signature Editions, Winnipeg, 2019) was shortlisted f…

Rebecca and Tara provide an update on their 2024 goals! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur 2024 Inclusive Picture Book Read Along Challenge @readingwithredandthemagpie My Ántonia by Willa Cather The Street by Ann Petry The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark The Member of …

Rebecca and Tara share their latest reads! Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle): The People's Hospital: Hope and Peril in American Medicine by Ricardo Nuila The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers Autokrator by Emily A. Weedon The Street by Ann Petry The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark Small Acts of Courage: A Legacy of Endurance and…