Explore great books by Canadian authors

49thShelf.com is the largest collection of Canadian books on the Internet—and an amazing way to discover your next great read.

Let us show you how!

join us!

Books Celebrating Friendship in All Its Forms read more

On Loss and Love: Books Exploring Grief read more

Messy Fiction for the Win read more

New Books from Newfoundland read more

Giveaways Galore! Enter for a Chance to Win! read more

Life Stories: New Biography and Memoir

The Girl from Dream City

A Literary Life

by Linda Leith

“If you liked memoirs by Diana Athill, Alexandra Fuller, and Madame de Staël, you'll love Linda Leith's new book.”—Mary Soderstrom, author of C …

read about it

The Bookseller of Florence

by Ross King

"Throughout, King deftly navigates Florence's rich cultural and political history, painting intimate portraits of Vespasiano and others involved in t …

read about it

Chiru Sakura--Falling Cherry Blossoms

A Mother & Daughter's Journey through Racism, Internment and Oppression

by Grace Eiko Thomson

"'Art is solely about living--living and doing without necessarily having to consciously interpret, define or choose.'--Thus says Grace Eiko Thompson, …

read about it

My Mother's Daughter

A Memoir of Struggle and Triumph

by Perdita Felicien

INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER
"[A] beautifully written and compelling memoir." —Toronto Star

"Perdita Felicien takes on the ambitious feat of chronicli …

read about it

Alexa!

Changing the Face of Canadian Politics

by Stephen Kimber

"I never had the opportunity to know or to work with Alexa McDonough — but I really wish I had. Her story is a rich piece of Canada’s political st …

read about it

The Bushman’s Lair

On the Trail of the Fugitive of the Shuswap

by Paul McKendrick

“A footloose misfit? A psychic in training for the us military? A private investigator for one of the principals in the Bre-X gold mining scandal? A …

read about it

mitoni niya nêhiyaw / Cree is Who I Truly Am

nêhiyaw-iskwêw mitoni niya / Me, I am Truly a Cree Woman

as told by Sarah Whitecalf
edited and translated by H. C. Wolfart & Freda Ahenakew
preface by Ted Whitecalf

read about it

Tales from the Buccaneer Lodge

by Frank Leaman

read about it

Carry On

Poetry by Young Immigrants

by Various contributors
illustrated by Rogé Girard

"Showcases the diverse perspectives of young immigrants... Small but mighty."

read about it

Before My Time

A Memoir of Love and Fate

by Ami McKay

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

“McKay breathes new life into the ghosts of her deceased relatives, presenting them in vignettes as characters that readers come …

read about it

Tiger Girl and the Candy Kid

America's Original Gangster Couple

by Glenn Stout

"Reported with a historian's careful research and written with a novelist's mastery of character and scene,Tiger Girl and the Candy Kid is a true-crim …

read about it

Begin by Telling

by Meg Remy

"Begin by Telling reminds us that the very act of telling one's story can change one's life."

read about it

Crossroads

My Story of Tragedy and Resilience as a Humboldt Bronco

by Kaleb Dahlgren

“There are few things more Canadian than a group of hockey-loving teenagers taking a bus to a big game on the Prairies. That’s why the Humboldt tr …

read about it

Lookout

Love, Solitude, and Searching for Wildfire in the Boreal Forest

by Trina Moyles

“Moyles tells a totally engrossing story of fear and love, self-recrimination and healing, by turns vivid with memory and presence. Page after page, …

read about it

The Bright Side

Twelve Months, Three Heartbreaks, and One (Maybe) Miracle

by Cathrin Bradbury

“It is rare for a memoir to be very funny and unwaveringly honest. But Cathrin Bradbury’s The Bright Side is brilliantly both. You could (quite c …

read about it

Not on My Watch

How a renegade whale biologist took on governments and industry to save wild salmon

by Alexandra Morton

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

“[O]ne of the most important reads to come out of B.C., if not the country, this year. . . . It’s a story that’s heartbreakin …

read about it

Northern Light

Power, Land, and the Memory of Water

by Kazim Ali

"Ali’s prose shines when recalling his interactions with members of the Pimicikamak community and friends. Those concerned with environmental justic …

read about it

see all

On the Blog

New Picture Books for Spring

By Kerry Clare

A selection of gorgeous new picture books celebrating new life, hope, nature, and mindfulness.

Other Beings, Other Minds

By Patricia Robertson

A recommended reading list by author of the new book Hour of the Crab.

Book Cover WANTED! Criminals of the Animal Kingdom

Notes from a Children's Librarian: Life Sciences

By Julie Booker

Celebrate Earth Day with these fun and inspiring picture books.

Courage from the Outliers

By Michelle Butler Hallett

A recommended reading list by the author of new novel Constant Nobody.

With Half Life (McClelland & Stewart), Krista Foss has delivered a spectacular sophomore novel, one that entangles complex questions of generational trauma, aging, and resistance with physics, indie m …

8 Books for Fans of Fabulism

By Kim Neville

A recommended reading list by Kim Neville, whose debut novel is The Memory Collectors.

@49thshelf on Twitter

Check out author Patricia Robertson’s THE HOUR OF THE CRAB, excellent recos, and enter for a chance to win!… https://t.co/fmqxkhZ6rQBy 49thShelf – at 18:30 on 19 Apr
A list of books that “[acknowledge] how little we really know & how much wiser the older beings on our planet are”… https://t.co/lMXS372FKPBy 49thShelf – at 17:39 on 19 Apr
Check out what Kim Neville, author of the new novel, THE MEMORY COLLECTORS, says about Hiromi Goto’s SHADOW LIFE (i… https://t.co/EH5uktZVR4By 49thShelf – at 12:45 on 19 Apr
Ooh, this is serious! Criminals of the Animal Kingdom! Among them, Big Bad Mama (aka the common cuckoo), who sneaks… https://t.co/Rge13CCl16By 49thShelf – at 12:16 on 19 Apr
Notes from a Children’s Librarian: Books for Life Sciences, incl. Characteristics of Living Things (Grade 1), Growt… https://t.co/vJPEOl78xEBy 49thShelf – at 13:41 on 16 Apr