Podcast
Canada Reads Inspired
Hosted by Canada Reads Inspired · EN
Two friends -- one American, one Canadian -- who share a love for CBC’s Canada Reads and Canadian literature! https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads
34episodes
Episodes
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2026 Summer Reading Bingo Challenge
2w ago00:21:00Tap to summarizeCANADA 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) on Instagram or email them at craspod2019@gmail.com with a screenshot or list of titles You may enter more than one Bingo line; one completed line equals one entry If you have already read a book on the card, you can count it towards your bingo At the end of the Challenge, they will draw the name of one winner and that person will receive a $50 gift card from the independent bookstore of their choice. The giveaway is not affiliated with YouTube or Instagram 2026 BINGO TITLES: Small Ceremonies by Kyle Edwards – Indigenous fiction, 368 pages Breathing is How Some People Stay Alive by Alison Gadsby — short stories, 200 pages The Distance of a Shout by Michael Ondaatje – poetry, 240 pages Nowhere by Jon Claytor – graphic novel, 445 pages Doubles by Nora Gold – novella, 86 pages Lies I Told My Sister by Louise Ells – literary fiction, 268 pages Opposite Sully’s Gym by Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson – mystery, 320 pages Detective Aunty by Uzma Jalaluddin – cozy mystery, 329 pages Lilac People by Milo Todd – LGBT historical fiction, 303 pages The Hunger We Pass Down by Jen Sookfong Lee — horror, 367 pages Finding Flora by Elinor Florence – historical fiction, 384 pages All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whittaker — crime fiction, 576 pages I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together by Maurice Vellekoop – graphic novel, 496 pages Vanished Beyond the Map by Adam Shoalts – non-fiction, 288 pages Legendary Frybread Drive-In by Indigenous authors – YA short stories, 352 pages Nosy Parker by Lesley Crewe – historical fiction, 264 pages Outsider by Brett Popplewell – non-fiction, 384 pages Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson — memoir, humour, 363 pages Palm Meridian by Grace Flahive – LGBT romance Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey — literary fiction,320 pages Pennies by Lora Senf – middle grade horror, 384 pages Chasing Summer by Frankie Scott – romance, 368 pages Suddenly Light by Nina Dunic – short stories, 240 pages Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo — literary fiction, 498 pages If you have any comments or suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com
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Literary Rabbit Holes 2
3w ago00:30:40Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 (@canadareadsinspired): Black Out Loud: The Revolutionary History of Black Comedy from Vaudeville to '90s Sitcoms by Geoff Bennett Poets and Pahlevans: A Journey into the Heart of Iran Seldom Seen Road by John Degen https://www.kingorama.com/ https://www.glfc.org/sea-lamprey.php Tara (@onabranchreads): An Evening with Birdy O'Day Somebody is Walking on Your Grave: My Cemetery Journeys by Mariana Enriquez; translated by Megan McDowell https://nikidesaintphalle.org/nikis-sculptures-le-cimetiere-de-montparnasse/ https://ilgiardinodeitarocchi.it/en/about/materials-crew/ https://www.rottnestisland.com/learn/history/aboriginal-history If you have any comments or suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com
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Book Chat 34
4w ago00:58:20Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 with Me by Brian Selznick Doubles by Nora Gold Class Lessons by Lucy Black Seldom Seen Road by John Degen Welcome to Sunny Town by Théodora Armstrong Tara: Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker Chrysalis by Anuja Varghese Cannon by Lee Lai Day of Epiphany by Jerome J Bourgault The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts by Kim Fu A Little Feral by Maria Geisbrecht Wild Life by Amanda Leduc How to Be Okay When Nothing is Okay by Jenny Lawson Check out Rebecca and Tara on Instagram: @canadareadsinspired @onabranchreads If you have any comments or suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com
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Interview - Dr. Nora Gold and Doubles
May 1600:28:43Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 girl who is obsessed with math. Engagingly written and often funny, this novella explores how a sensitive young teenager changes over a six-month period from a polite, quiet “good girl” into a delinquent. Although set in the past, Doubles has direct relevance to today, with our recently heightened awareness of the harsh reality in some of our residential institutions during that era (including for Indigenous children, but not only)." Recommended: https://bookshop.org/lists/stunning-novellas Embers by Sándor Márai; Carol Brown Janeway (translator) https://www.noragold.com/ https://www.noragold.com/portfolio/jewish-fiction-com/ https://www.instagram.com/noragold1818/
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Interview - Alison Gadsby and Breathing Is How Some People Stay Alive
May 100:33:24Tap to summarizeTara 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, catastrophic speculative fiction, and psychological realism in a collection that might best be described as weird fiction. These connected stories offer dark reconstructions of lives brimming with desperate loneliness. They allow us to bear witness to the life-altering love of sisters, brothers, mothers… the life-altering love that buoys them as they struggle to stay afloat in the wake of childhoods they merely survived." https://alisongadsby.ca/home/ https://junctionreads.ca Books and Authors mentioned: Weird Babies by Jaclyn Desforges Tell Me Pleasant Things about Immortality by Lindsay Wong Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu Rafael Has Pretty Eyes by Elaine McCluskey Widow Fantasies by Hollay Ghadery Every Night I Dream I'm a Monk, Every Night I Dream I'm a Monster by Damian Tarnopolsky Last Woman; Bad Endings by Carleigh Baker A Song for Wildcats by Caitlin Galway A Fast Horse Never Brings Good News by Cary Fagan Coexistence by Billy-Ray Belcourt Layaway Child by Chanel Sutherland Remaindered People & Other Stories by Pratap Reddy Skin by Catherine Bush Chrysalis; Kiss of Crimson Ash by Anuja Varghese Smash & Grab by Mark Anthony Jarman Death by a Thousand Cuts by Shashi Bhat Flights by Olga Tokarczuk The Longest Way to Eat a Melon by Jacquelyn Zong-Li Ross Pizza Before We Die: An Eyewitness Account in Gaza by Hassani Kanafani Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Mai Nguyen Wonderland Road by Carrianne Leung Stan on Guard by K.R. Wilson The Lost Queen by Heidi von Palleske "Poet pals" going on tour with Alison: Sublunary by Lisa Richter Ajar by Margo LaPierre Inside Every Dream, a Raging Sea by Liz Worth
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CBC's 2026 Canada Reads DAY THREE Wrap Up
Apr 1500:39:53Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 that all of Canada should read will be announced! https://www.youtube.com/@BookwormAdventureGirl Then join Rebecca and Tara live on YouTube on Friday, April 17 @ 9:45am EDT with their special guest, Canada Reads Host, Ali Hassan! 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 (Dangle) Glynn champions Searching for Terry Punchout by Tyler Hellard Musician and writer Tegan Quin champions The Cure for Drowning by Loghan Paylor Broadway actor and kids TV host Josh Dela Cruz champions Foe by Iain Reid BookTok star Morgann Book champions It's Different This Time by Joss Richard
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CBC's 2026 Canada Reads DAY TWO Wrap Up
Apr 1400:47:49Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 (Dangle) Glynn champions Searching for Terry Punchout by Tyler Hellard Musician and writer Tegan Quin champions The Cure for Drowning by Loghan Paylor Broadway actor and kids TV host Josh Dela Cruz champions Foe by Iain Reid BookTok star Morgann Book champions It's Different This Time by Joss Richard
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Interview – Finnian Burnett and Redshirts Sometimes Survive
Apr 1000:31:10Tap to summarizeTara 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 her voice at a protest. Queer fans, lonely children, awkward convention-goers, and disillusioned adults seek out their favourite starships and captains for solace and strength. In these interconnected flash stories, the outcasts, the rebels, the bullied, and the weird find themselves, one other, and a place to call home. By turns moving, thoughtful, and wry, Redshirts Sometimes Survives offers connection and comfort. Being a redshirt doesn’t mean you’re doomed. Sometimes, it means you survive." Books discussed: The House in the Cerulean Sea; Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid The Book of Delights by Ross Gay Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White Ravens Don’t Get High Blood Pressure and Other Tales of Queer Love; The Life and Dead Trees (two works in progress); The Clothes Make the Man; The Price of Cookies by Finnian Burnett https://www.instagram.com/finnianburnett/ https://finnburnett.com/
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2026 CBC's Canada Reads Review
Apr 800:29:35Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk for adults or the new one for youth books starting in May 2026, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com
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Interview - Leslie Shimotakahara and The Breakwater
Mar 2900:31:23Tap to summarizeRebecca 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 before, but she begrudgingly agrees to plan a family trip with her father and daughter, Tessa, to Victoria, the hometown Yas was forcibly evicted from when Japanese Canadians were interned during World War Two. It's only in BC that Cathy learns this “cousin” is actually Yas’s younger brother, Stum, who’s been languishing in psychiatric care, abandoned, ever since Yas committed him to Essondale Asylum before the war. Yas tries to fend off probing questions from his daughter and granddaughter, but revisiting old haunts brings back memories of the brothers’ boyhood rivalry and coming-of-age near Victoria’s Chinatown, when Yas’s resolve to hold their fractured family together clashed against Stum’s troublesome turn toward a life of gambling, crime, and consorting with prostitutes. In this heartbreaking family story, two brothers, both old men not far from death, must at last confront long-buried family secrets — and their lingering effects on subsequent generations." Recommended Books: Flashlight by Susan Choi Worldly Girls: A Memoir by Tamara Jong It Must Be Beautiful to Be Finished: A Memoir of My Body by Kate Gies https://leslieshimotakahara.com/ https://www.instagram.com/leslieshimotakahara
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