Nothing can help shift your perspective and break you out of existentialism faster than reading another person’s lived experience. With the amount of different lives we see online advising us on how to live, and what we “should” do, feeling lost is the new baseline.
These books offer an alternative: immerse yourself in the worlds of others, with stories on their dealings with the supernatural, severed cultural ties, and lifetimes of environmental activism and chronic illness. Hear the voices of women in adventure sports, speaking to you from atop a tightrope, and from the man who spent 50 years travelling the nation as a journalist. Pick up a memoir from your local bookstore to reconnect to individual voices, full-length stories, and real lived experiences.
For the love of nature
Flow: Women’s Counternarratives from Rivers, Rock, and Sky edited by Denisa Krásná, Alena Rainsberry (Rocky Mountain Books)
Explore diverse women’s narratives in adventure sports in this anthology that challenges stereotypes while promoting unity. It advocates for a transcultural feminism, one offering hope and empowerment to break barriers and live fully.
Out now
Alone in Wonderland: Longing for Connection and Adventure in the Shadow of Mount Rainier — A Memoir by Christine E. Reed (Rocky Mountain Books)
A woman leaves behind the expectations of conventional life to walk solo into the wild — and discovers far more than just the miles ahead. When Christine Reed first stumbled across a long-distance hiking blog at her office desk, she never imagined it would change her life. With little outdoor experience and no real plan, she decided to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. That single decision sparked a journey of thousands of miles and countless transformations.
Out now
Lessons From a Lifetime: Ninety Years of Inspiration and Activism
by David Suzuki and Ian Hanington (Greystone Books)
This keepsake collection, featuring tributes from Margaret Atwood and Neil Young, captures the essence of a revolutionary life as it celebrates the legacy of environmental icon David Suzuki.
Out now
On dealing with death and the other side
A Ghost in the Room: Supernatural Adventures in Historic Houses by Ann McDougall (Tidewater Press)
In A Ghost in the Room, author Ann McDougall draws upon her decades of experience with historic houses across the country to share their tales of the supernatural, and investigate our enduring desire to communicate with the dead.
Out now
Last Caravan by Anna Byrne (Caitlin Press)
Anna Byrne’s The Last Caravan offers a new paradigm for deathcare by returning it to the hands of the community.
Out now
On culture and language
Growing My Way Home by Jenn Ashton (Talon Books)
Sad, shocking, and truthful, Growing My Way Home chronicles one woman’s struggle through events all too common among a people who have been separated from their culture and their language.
Out now
Book Title: ᑭᐢᑭᓱᒥᑐᐠ kiskisomitok: ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐤ to remind each and one another by ᑳᐯᓵᑳᐢᑌᐠ reuben Quinn (Talon Books)
nêhîyaw educator ᑳᐯᓵᑳᐢᑌᐠ reuben quinn uses the spirit marker writing system as a foundation for teaching ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐁᐧᐃᐧᐣ nêhîyawewin. Sometimes called the star chart, this system holds forty-four large spirit markers and fourteen small spirit markers. Each large spirit marker holds a law; these laws are meant to guide us in ways that support us in life, in living well with the elements: fire, land, water, and air. The spirit markers remind us that these elements form the foundations of all relationships on earth.
Out now
On living with illness
Better Halves: Rebuilding a Post-Addiction Marriage by Christopher Dale (Thornapple Press)
A recovering drug addict details the arduous but liberating process of forging a recommitted marriage’s path to healing and balance.
Out now
Where the Eff is My Red Tent? by Heather Hendrie (Caitlin Press)
Written in Heather Hendrie’s uniquely intimate voice, Where the Eff is My Red Tent is a deeply personal collection of essays chronicling a lifelong struggle with PMDD.
Coming September
Fallosophy: My Trip through Life with MS by Ardra Shephard (Douglas and McIntyre)
A memoir based on columnist, fashion-show TV host, podcaster and MS advocate Ardra Shephard’s award-winning blog, Tripping on Air.
Out now
On politics and religion
I’m Not A Mormon (Anymore) by Cathalynn Labonte Smith (Caitlin Press)
As a teenager, Cathalynn Labonté-Smith makes the extraordinary decision to become a Mormon, only to realize that it’s not everything she expected.
Coming September
From Ragged Ass Road to Rideau Hall: Stories of Canada by Whit Fraser (Douglas and McIntyre)
Veteran journalist Whit Fraser recounts the stories behind the stories in this collection of tales drawn from fifty years of reporting on nation-changing events.
Out now
To open up young minds
Soup’s On Around the World by Denyse Waissbluth, illustrated by Chelsea O’Byrne (Greystone Books)
Through vibrant illustrations and heartwarming text, Soup’s On Around the World invites readers on a flavorful journey of soups across the globe, each with its own unique history and traditions!
Out now