As my Newfie mother and relatives say, “stay where you’re at ’till I comes where you’re to” and you can do exactly that—either the staying or the coming, up to you—with this geographical journey across BC with books set in the province. Though we’re not venturing to the Atlantic (sorry, family), we will be island hopping between the Gulf Islands, the main island, and northern coast through cycling trip guides, stories of family canoe trips, and seaside reunions with loved ones.
From the Cariboo to the Kootenays, from Salt Spring to the Okanagan, from the beaches to the East Vancouver evening skies, there’s a good chance that a BC book is based in your little corner of BC, written by a local author and published by a local independent publisher. These books were crafted carefully and intentionally by people who were born in, travelled to, or currently reside in the same hometown as you.
Find a BC book that feels like home. ⬇ 👀
Happy local reading!
Cariboo
The Fort George Murders of 1823: Crisis and Coexistence in New Caledonia by Geoff Mynett (Caitlin Press)
In 1823, a violent incident in present-day Prince George shattered a fragile trading relationship between the local Indigenous community and the Hudson’s Bay Company. Bestselling BC author and historian Geoff Mynett delves into a crisis that threatened the future of the fur trade in the region.
Out now
Kootenays
Lake O’Hara: Secluded Jewel of the Canadian Rockies by Scott Forysth (Rocky Mountain Books)
Tucked within Yoho National Park in the Canadian Rockies, Lake O’Hara is a place of rare beauty and deep history. In Lake O’Hara: Secluded Jewel of the Canadian Rockies, award-winning photographer Scott Forsyth captures this backcountry paradise in breathtaking detail—from mirrored reflections on the lake’s surface to the rugged silhouettes of Wiwaxy Peaks and Odaray Mountain.
Out on May 12; pre-order now
Rufous and Calliope: A Novel by Sarah Louise Butler (Douglas & McIntyre)
In Rufous and Calliope, Sarah Louise Butler takes readers deep into the rugged British Columbia Interior, where the mysteries of nature collide with the fragile threads of memory.
Out now
North Coast
Springtime in Kitkatla by Kim Spencer, illustrated by Karlene Harvey (Orca Book Publishers)
Wałaas and her dzi’i (grandmother) travel by fishing boat to their family’s reserve of Kitkatla for spring break, to stay with her aunty. In Kitkatla, it always feels like home, and as the days pass, Wałaas wanders the shore, enjoys traditional foods and listens to the adults speak Sm’algya̱x. She doesn’t want to leave, but she knows she will always come back.
Out now
Thompson Okanagan
A Season in the Okanagan by Bill Arnott (Rocky Mountain Books)
Embark on another thrilling adventure with acclaimed travel writer Bill Arnott in A Season in the Okanagan. From meaningful encounters with locals to uncovering hidden treasures, Bill captures the essence of why the Okanagan Valley stands as another of BC’s premier tourist destinations. Indulge in exquisite cuisine, world-class wines, unique natural landscapes, and captivating wildlife encounters as Bill paints a vivid picture of life in British Columbia’s scenic interior.
Out now
Vancouver
Crowd Source by Cecily Nicholson (Talonbooks)
Crowd Source parallels the daily migration of crows who journey across Metro Vancouver every day at dawn and dusk. Continuing Nicholson’s attention to contemporary climate crisis, social movements, and Black diasporic relations, this is a text for all concerned with practising ecological futurities befitting corvid sensibilities.
Out now
Guns Across the River: A Wakeland Novel by Sam Wiebe (Harbour Publishing)
Sam Wiebe’s gripping sixth Wakeland novel delivers a taut, atmospheric mystery that dives into corruption, crime and family secrets deeply rooted in Vancouver’s underworld.
Out now
Cheapskate in Lotusland: The Philosophy and Practice of Living Well on a Small Budget by Steve Burgess (Douglas & McIntyre)
Cheapskate in Lotusland is an entertaining and exuberant testament to the philosophy and practice of frugality and an invitation to live better by living within one’s means.
Out now
Wildlife Weekends in Southern British Columbia: Day and Multi-Day Trips from Vancouver for Wildlife Viewing by Roy Jantzen (Rocky Mountain Books)
Wildlife Weekends invites readers to discover the wildlife living within the many different ecosystems of southern British Columbia. Greater ecological awareness offers readers the ability to deeply appreciate and understand animals and their habitats.
Out now
Bark Twice for Murder by John Lekich (Orca Book Publishers)
After the death of his parents, Harry keeps busy by making food for the unhoused in his grandmother’s food truck. That’s how he meets and befriends Stanley, an excellent cook and teacher with only two possessions: a precious recipe binder and a grumpy dog named Waffles. Then Stanley turns up dead, the victim of a grisly murder, and his treasured recipe book is gone. Will this souped-up duo be able to take down a heaping serving of criminal characters, or will they be the next dish on the murderer’s menu?
Out now
Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands
My Turquoise Years: Expanded 20th Anniversary Edition by M.A.C. Farrant (Talonbooks)
This is the twentieth-anniversary edition of Farrant’s beloved memoir of coming of age with an absent mother in a vanished time. The setting is Vancouver Island, the year 1960. It is the era of the Three Stooges and the Red Menace, the apex of plastic, Arborite, and everything turquoise: high heels, pedal pushers, refrigerators, even cars.
Out now
All of Us Hidden Joanna Streetly (Caitlin Press)
Six years ago, Joanna’s Streetly’s two stepsons and their boat disappeared into the ocean on an eerily calm night, barely 200 feet from Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island. All of Us Hidden begins with poems that inhabit Tla-o-qui-aht traditional territory, the remote summer whaling islet where Streetly lived for several years with her former partner and stepsons. Streetly’s poetry ripples out beyond location and loss, into a broader investigation of time’s capricious shaping and re-shaping of children, parents, Earth, and the self.
Out now
Unorganized Territory: A Boy’s Own Memoir by David Gurr (Stonehewer Books)
David Gurr returns with a witty and touching memoir of a boyhood in British Columbia. On the surface, it’s an ideal setting for a restless adolescent hungry for adventure, but hovering over it all, unseen but not unfelt, is a dark family secret guarded closely by the author’s parents. Gurr tells the story of his topsy-turvy early life with great panache, an exceptional memory for colourful detail, and a wry sense of humour.
Out now
Andy’s Tribal Canoe Journey by Seabacola Beaton, Cadence Manson, and Jorja Johnson (Strong Nations Publishing)
Andy has had a rough school year and is ready for summer vacation. But when Grandpa Rick tells him that he will be participating in a canoe journey instead of enjoying his usual summer activities, Andy feels he is being punished. Join Andy as he experiences a Tribal Canoe Journey for the first time and learns what it’s like to belong to a canoe family. Follow along as Andy navigates physical and emotional challenges and finds an answer to the important question: “Who am I?”
The book begins in Nanaimo, BC, and follows a Tribal Canoe Journey down the coast of Vancouver Island and past the Gulf Islands.
Out now
Cycling the Islands, Updated Edition: A Guide to Scenic Routes on the San Juan and Gulf Islands by John Crouch (Rocky Mountain Books)
With more than 30 carefully curated cycling adventures across 11 unique islands—including Salt Spring, Pender, Mayne, Galiano, Gabriola, Denman, and Hornby—this full-colour guidebook offers everything you need to plan your ride: detailed maps, local history, scenic highlights, points of interest, road types, route conditions, difficulty ratings, and start-and-end directions. Full of vibrant photographs and written in a clear, friendly tone, it’s both inspiring and easy to use.
Out on April 26; pre-order now