CBC Books has put together a list of 40 Nonfiction titles to look out for this spring, including CRY WOLF by Harold R. Johnson, DISFIGURED by Amanda Leduc, MY MOTHER’S DAUGHTER by Perdita Felicien, A HISTORY OF MY BRIEF BODY by Billy-Ray Belcourt, THEY SAID THIS WOULD BE FUN by Eternity Martis, I OVERCAME MY AUTISM AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS LOUSY ANXIETY DISORDER by Sarah Kurchak, NISHGA by Jordan Abel, NATURAL KILLER by Harriet Alida Lye, DEAD MOM WALKING by Rachel Matlow and ALONE: A Love Story by Michelle Parise. Here’s what they had to say
CRY WOLF by Harold R. Johnson
In 2005, 22-year-old University of Waterloo student Kenton Carnegie was killed in a wolf attack near his work camp in northern Saskatchewan. Harold R. Johnson, an experienced hunter and trapper, had been told to stay away from wolves. Johnson takes on wolves and the mythology around them in Cry Wolf. He explores Carnegie’s death and other wolf attacks and suggests that we should take wolves more seriously.
Harold is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. CRY WOLF was published January 11, 2020 by the University of Regina Press.
DISFIGURED by Amanda Leduc
In most fairy tales, characters who have disabilities or look different are often mocked or are the villain. In Disfigured, Amanda Leduc looks at fairy classics, from the classic Brothers Grimm to the modern Disney films, and explores how the representation of disability has informed how we see the world around us from a very young age and makes a case for a new set of tales, ones that celebrate difference and inclusivity.
Amanda is represented by Samantha Haywood. DISFIGURED was published February 4, 2020 by Coach House Books.
MY MOTHER’S DAUGHTER by Perdita Felicien
Perdita Felicien’s mom Catherine was a poor young woman in St. Lucia when she is given a seemingly random, but ultimately life-changing opportunity: to come to Canada with a wealthy white family and become their nanny. But when she gets to Canada, life is tougher than she expected, as she endures poverty, domestic violence and even homelessness. However, she still encouraged and supported her youngest daughter’s athletic dreams. Perdita would go on to be a world-class hurdler and one of Canada’s greatest track athletes. My Mother’s Daughter is the story of these two women, and how their love for each other got them through difficult times and changed their lives.
Perdita is represented by Samantha Haywood. MY MOTHER’S DAUGHTER will be released April 14, 2020 by Doubleday Canada.
A HISTORY OF MY BRIEF BODY by Billy-Ray Belcourt
Billy-Ray Belcourt was the youngest-ever winner of the Griffin Poetry Prize. He was also the first First Nations Rhodes scholar from Canada. But he was once a young boy, growing up in Driftpile Cree Nation in Alberta. A History of My Brief Body tells his story: how his family was impacted by colonialism and intergenerational trauma and yet still hold joy and love in their hearts and lives, how he came into his queer identity and how writing became both a place of comfort and solace and a weapon for a young man trying to figure out his place in the world.
Billy-Ray is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. A HISTORY OF MY BRIEF BODY will be released May 19, 2020 by Hamish Hamilton.
THEY SAID THIS WOULD BE FUN by Eternity Martis
Eternity Martis was smart, bookish and excited to go to university. But once she got to campus, life wasn’t what she imagined. She was often the only student of colour in classes, at parties and in dorms, and had to face racial slurs, students in blackface at parties and more on a regular basis. They Said This Would Be Fun is a memoir about the difficulty of navigating through white spaces as a student of colour and asks us to confront the systemic issues that define the college experience for racialized and marginalized students.
Eternity is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. THEY SAID THIS WOULD BE FUN will be released by McClelland & Stewart on March 31, 2020.
I OVERCAME MY AUTISM AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS LOUSY ANXIETY DISORDER by Sarah Kurchak
Sarah Kurchak has autism. While she was growing up in the 1980s and 1990s, she realized she was different from her peers — and did everything to overcome it. She changed everything about herself to fit in. It worked, but along the way, she developed anxiety and depression. I Overcame My Autism and All I Got Was This Lousy Anxiety Disorder is a memoir about how Kurchak became an “autism” success story, how it almost ruined her life, and what she did to reclaim her identity and her health.
Sarah is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. I OVERCAME MY AUTISM will be released by Douglas & McIntyre April 18, 2020.
NISHGA by Jordan Abel
Nishga is a memoir by Griffin Poetry Prize winner Jordan Abel. In it, Abel grapples with his identity as a Nisga’a writer, with being an intergenerational residential school survivor and with his own Indigenous identity while consistently being asked to represent Nisga’a language and culture. Blending memoir, transcriptions and photography, Nishga is an exploration of what it means to be a modern Indigenous person and how both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people engage with the legacy of colonial violence and racism.
Jordan is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. NISHGA will be released by McClelland & Stewart April 14, 2020.
NATURAL KILLER by Harriet Alida Lye
When Harriet Alida Lye was 15 years old, she was diagnosed with a deadly form of leukemia. She later learned that the life expectancy of those with Natural Killer leukemia is 58 days. No one previously had survived this diagnosis. But Lye did. And 15 years later, Lye became pregnant — but she was told it would be unlikely that she’d ever have a child.. Natural Killer is a memoir about surviving cancer and becoming a mother and about learning to trust your body once more.
Harriet is represented by Stephanie Sinclair. NATURAL KILLER will be released by McClelland & Stewart April 21, 2020.
DEAD MOM WALKING by Rachel Matlow
Rachel Matlow’s mom Elaine was a creative free-spirit, personality traits Rachel celebrated. This was until Elaine is diagnosed with cancer and decides to treat her illness with natural remedies, leaving Rachel to face the fact that what made her mom so special is what’s going to kill her. Dead Mom Walking is the story of Rachel, Elaine and Elaine’s cancer — based on Rachel’s memories, Elaine’s journals and the hours of tape they recorded together as they prepared to say goodbye.
Rachel is represented by Samantha Haywood. DEAD MOM WALKING will be released by Viking March 31, 2020.
ALONE: A Love Story by Michelle Parise
Alone: a Love Story is a successful CBC podcast about learning to love yourself in the wake of an unexpected breakup. CBC Radio producer Michelle Parise had it all: a career, a house, a husband, a kid. But when her husband ends things, Parise’s world is turned upside down and she questions everything she knew about life, love and success. Alone: A Love Story is the unpublished book that inspired the podcast, now available for the first time.
Michelle is represented by Samantha Haywood. ALONE will be released by Dundun May 2, 2020.
To see the complete list, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/books/40-works-of-canadian-nonfiction-to-watch-for-in-spring-2020-1.5428506?__vfz=medium%3Dsharebar