Read Local BC

Cee Peal: Indigenous Storyteller in Residence Finale
2026-05-26 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Vancouver) | Vancouver Public Library, Central Branch, 350 West Georgia St., Vancouver, BC, V6B 6B1, Canada
Join us for an evening of discussion about theatre and idea generation in celebration of Cee Peal and his thought-provoking time as the 2026 Indigenous Storyteller in Residence.
Cee Peal is a theatre artist from the Nisga’a First Nation of Northern B.C. now working in Vancouver on the traditional, unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-waututh), and sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) peoples. He brings to the library his experience in storytelling, theatre, and image making, drawing from his experience working as an actor, director, writer, dancer, and producer on various productions. With a passion for Indigenous studies and cultural evolution, Cee is also the Indigenous outreach coordinator at The Cultch and the artistic associate at The Carmen Arts Group.

Book launch: The Art of Looking Back by Theresa Kishkan
2026-05-29 13:00 - 15:00 | Sechelt Public Library, 5797 Cowrie St, Sechelt, BC, V0N 3A0, Canada
Join Theresa Kishkan for the release of her memoir, The Art of Looking Back: A Painter, an Obsession, and Reclaiming the Gaze.
Theresa examines her youth and her role as muse to Victoria artist Jack Wilkinson. More than a reminiscence, this poetic memoir asks questions about older men and younger women and girls, and the persistence of that dynamic in art.

Book Signing: The Heart of Japan
2026-05-31 12:00 - 16:00 | Indigo Robson, 1033 Robson Street, Vancouver, BC, V6E 1A9, Canada
Meet Lower Mainland author Lesley Hebert, who will be signing copies of her unique travel memoir The Heart of Japan

Spaal' : Library Book Launch with Patrick Aleck Jr.
2026-05-31 13:30 - 15:00 | Vancouver Island Regional Library, Nanaimo Harbourfront Branch, 90 Commercial Street, Nanaimo, BC, V9R 5G4, Canada
Join Patrick Aleck Jr. for the launch of his debut children’s book, Spaal’: A Raven with Different Wings. This event will feature drumming and a reading of Spaal’ by Patrick, followed by a Q&A.
About Spaal’: Being born with different wings makes flying very challenging for Spaal’. What’s worse, the other ravens laugh at him which makes him feel sad. But with help from two kind teachers, and the support of the Elder Ravens, Spaal learns that his difference is a gift, and how he can use that gift to help others. Spaal’: A Raven with Different Wings is based on a true story about determination, kindness, and strength.
About Patrick: Patrick embodies a spirit of resilience. Living with cerebral palsy, Patrick learned how to walk when he was around eight years old and since 2011, he has been on an ongoing intergenerational healing journey. In 2012, Patrick reconnected with his culture, and he regularly drums, publicly speaks about his story, and began composing music in 2015. Patrick is a Raven with different wings and his unique experiences continue to carry him forward in important and meaningful ways.
Now a published author, Patrick is a recording artist and Stz’uminus and Penelakut Knowledge Keeper.

NVDPL Illustrator Visit: Vivian Truong
2026-06-03 09:15 - 10:15 | Online
Join us in virtually-welcoming our special illustrator guest, Vivian Truong!
Vivian Truong is a British-born Chinese comic artist. Her works include the bestselling middle grade series: City of Dragons: The Awakening Storm; a manga-inspired teen series Cooking with Monsters; Beano: The Day the Teachers Disappeared; and her latest cookbook graphic novel, Buddha Jump Over the Wall, which recently received Google Play’s best of 2025 award. She is currently working on the fourth instalment of City of Dragons.
Best for school-age kids. Registration required.
Link to join will be emailed to all registrants before the start of the event.

The Heart of Japan: Author reading
2026-06-03 18:00 - 20:00 | New Westminster Public Library, 716 6th Avenue, New Westminster, BC, V3M 2B3, Canada
Meet New Westminster Lesley Hebert, who will be reading from her unique travel memoir The Heart of Japan

Armchair Detectives Special Event with Author Amber Cowie
2026-06-03 18:00 - 20:00 | North Vancouver Public Library – Capilano branch, 3045 Highland Blvd., North Vancouver, BC, V7R 2X4, Canada
Join crime and mystery author Amber Cowie (“The Off Season” and “Last One Alive”) for a special edition of Armchair Detectives.
Discuss the author’s work with the author herself.
All books are available through NVDPL.

Author Reading with Theresa Kishkan and Keiko Honda
2026-06-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Munro’s Books, 1108 Government Street, Victoria, BC, V8W 1Y2, Canada
Join Theresa Kishkan, author of The Art of Looking Back, and Keiko Honda, author of Hidden Flowers, for a reading and discussion of writing memoir.

Spirit of the Great Bear Exhibition & Book Signing with Photographer Jack Plant
2026-06-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Brackendale Art Gallery, 41950 Government Road, Squamish, BC, Canada
Experience the Great Bear Rainforest – a gallery exhibition and book launch celebrating one of Earth’s last true wildernesses.
Celebrate the launch of Spirit of the Great Bear, a powerful new book exploring one of the world’s last intact coastal rainforests. Featuring a foreword by Paul Nicklen, this special evening invites you to connect with the landscapes, wildlife, and stories that define the Great Bear Rainforest.
Join us at the Brackendale Art Gallery for an inspiring night of storytelling, learning, and visual immersion. Discover the rare spirit bear, gain insight into this unique ecosystem, and experience a curated exhibition of photographs from the book.
Books will be available for purchase, and guests will have the opportunity to meet Jack Plant, get their copy signed, and enjoy the exhibition. (No purchase necessary)

First Annual BC Author Market
2026-06-06 10:00 - 18:00 | Chilliwack Heritage Park, 44140 Luckakuck Way, Chilliwack, British Columbia, V2R 4A7, Canada
A gathering of BC local authors, for mingling, connecting, and selling their books to the public. This event is intended to build the local author community and to encourage BC residents to support local authors.

Author reading: Theresa Kishkan in celebration of The Art of Looking Back
2026-06-12 18:30 | Upstart & Crow, 1387 Railspur Alley Vancouver, BC V6H 3R7, Vancouver, BC, V6H 3R7, Canada
Join Theresa Kishkan for a reading from her new memoir, The Art of Looking Back.
At 23, Theresa Kishkan met an artist who became obsessed with her. She was young, she was flattered, and the situation quickly overwhelmed her. He drew and painted her for a few months, after which she went away for a year. When she returned, she was determined not to resume the relationship.
But the artist made contact with her after the birth of her first child and became a family friend, bringing gifts of paintings. Those images hung in Theresa’s home, and one in particular reminded her almost daily of her younger self, in ways both positive and not so much. She avoided looking too closely at his images of her and at his long, passionate and often troubling letters.
Decades later, while sorting old correspondence, she was taken back to those early days and began, at last, to write about her relationship with the now-deceased artist. The Art of Looking Back is a meditation on the male gaze, on reclaiming one’s younger self, and on agency: how we lose it, how we find it again. This poetic memoir asks questions about older men and younger women and girls, and the persistence of that dynamic in art.

Debunking the World We Live In: Unpacking the Matrix and System: Book Signing
2026-06-13 12:00 - 15:00 | Indigo Grandview Corners, #10 - 2453 161a Street, Surrey, BC, V3S 0M6, Canada
Meet Raminder Hayre for a book signing of Debunking the World We Live In: Unpacking the Matrix and System.
This book explores the idea of adjusting your expectations of the 3D world, offering insight into how energy works and influences our everyday lives. It examines the systems that surround us and questions why we are conditioned to become codependent on the people, places, and things in our lives.
Through this perspective, readers are invited to reflect on the changes they can make to better understand the human condition and move toward a more fulfilling life.

LiterASIAN 2026: Re-Generation
2026-06-27 13:00 - 2026-06-28 20:00 | Chinese Cultural Centre Museum, 555 Columbia Street, Vancouver, BC, V6A 3X3, Canada
The LiterASIAN Festival returns for its 14th annual edition with “Re-Generation,” a timely exploration of how Asian Canadian writers are reshaping literary culture today.
Running from June 27-28 across Vancouver, the festival brings together leading and emerging voices for a national celebration of storytelling, community, and creative exchange.
Widely recognized as Canada’s premier festival dedicated to Asian Canadian literature, LiterASIAN 2026 spotlights a new generation of writers who are reimagining inherited narratives and pushing the boundaries of form, voice, and identity.
This year’s lineup features Jinwoo Park (Oxford Soju Club), Evelyn Lau (Parade of Storms), Yasuko Thanh (To the Bridge), Larry Grant and Scott Steedman (Reconciling), Kagan Goh (Surviving Samsara), Steffi Tad-y (Notes from the Ward), Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho (Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street), and Keiko Honda (Hidden Flowers).
Additional speakers include Jessica Gin-Jade Chan (former Ricepaper Editor-in-Chief), Bonnie Quan Symons (poet and chapbook author), and Taslim Jaffer (editor, writer, and professor at the University of King’s College MFA program).
Festival programming includes feature readings, panel discussions, and workshops. Events will take place at leading cultural and literary venues across Vancouver, including the Chinatown Storytelling Centre, the Chinese Cultural Centre Museum, and Centre A: Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art.
“Fifty years after Inalienable Rice, the first anthology of Asian Canadian writing, we are witnessing a renewal,” said Festival Director Allan Cho. “LiterASIAN 2026 brings together writers who are not only reflecting on cultural inheritance, but actively transforming it.”
Highlights include:
● Literary Walking Tour — A guided exploration of Vancouver’s Chinatown through history and literature with filmmaker and photographer Larry Chin
● Emerging Writers Showcase — Featuring new voices from the Jim Wong-Chu Emerging Writers’ Award
● Writing Workshop — Exploring expressive writing as a practice for reflection and healing
● Chapbook-Making Class — A hands-on introduction to editing, sequencing, and design for a cohesive, self-published work
● ACWW Community Builders Award — Honouring leadership in advancing racial equity in Asian Canadian communities
● Live Drafting Session — An intimate, behind-the-scenes look at writers developing new work in real time
LiterASIAN 2026: Re-Generation is presented by the Asian Canadian Writers’ Workshop (ACWW), with the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, ACCESS Copyright Foundation, the Department of Canadian Heritage, the City of Vancouver, and community partners.
For tickets and full program details, please visit www.literasian.com.

Book Signing with Rosanna Elves
2026-07-18 12:00 - 15:00 | Chapters Indigo – Victoria, 1212 Douglas St, Victoria, BC, V8W 2E5, Canada
Meet children’s author and fiction writer, Rosanna Elves. She will be signing her debut book, “The Amusingly Amazing Alphabet.” Each letter has a vibrant and hilarious scene illustrated by Canadian illustrator Rebecca Carlyle-Allen and a 3-word alliteration story to match. You’ll discover more than meets the eye with the recommended activities for extended learning at the back of the book. Ask Rosanna when she’ll finally get to meet her illustrator in person and about her next children’s book coming out soon!

Interview Protocols and Practices for Playwriting with Kamila Sediego
2026-07-21 17:30 - 19:00 | Vancouver Public Library – Mount Pleasant Branch, 1 Kingsway, Vancouver, British Columbia, V5T 3H7, Canada
Do you have a play idea and need to interview someone for your research? Whether it’s for learning personal or familial histories, understanding historical/cultural/societal contexts, or digging deeper into a niche expertise the method and means of interview can affect what information is collected. Join a workshop with local published playwright and dramaturg, Kamila Sediego, for tips on how to ethically gather information, how to conduct interviews, and how to turn that research gold into storytelling tools and inspiration.
Kamila Sediego (she/her/siya) is a daughter of immigrants, sister, auntie, partner, playwright, and dramaturg grateful to live on the unceded and stolen territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples. Her ancestral roots stretch across the Pacific, and are embedded in the lands of Iloilo, Cebu, and Manila, Philippines.
Kamila’s play Homecoming was published by Playwrights Canada Press in 2025 and its world premiere (Urban Ink) was at the Cultch and at the Evergreen Arts Centre in 2024. Most recently, Kamila participated in the PuSh Festival’s In Dialogue program, and she was a playwright at Caravan Farm Theatre’s National Playwright Retreat. She was a Playwrights Theatre Centre Associate (2021-2024), and is a current Resident Dramaturg and co-lead of Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre’s Creation Lab. With the care and support of many, she is developing a new play, Engkanto.
Photo credit: Veronica Bonderud
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Presented in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre.
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This event is open to all with limited space available and registration is required. It takes place in the Mount Pleasant Branch Meeting room.
