Toews, Belcourt among Time’s must-read authors

Six Canadian books have landed on Time magazine’s list of the 100 must-read books of 2025.

Miriam Toews’ A Truce That Is Not Peace, Omar El Akkad’s One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This and Margaret Atwood’s Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts were the trio of top non-fiction titles.

On the fiction side, Souvankham Thammavongsa’s Giller-winning novel Pick a Colour and Madeleine Thien’s novel The Book of Records were among the featured fiction picks, while Billy-Ray Belcourt’s The Idea of an Entire Life was the lone Canadian poetry collection to make the list.

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Fresh off his Governor General’s Literary Award win for his debut novel Small Ceremonies, Manitoba-born, New York-based Anishinaabe author Kyle Edwards is one of four Canadian finalists for the 2026 Dublin Liiterary Award, worth €100,000 (around $162,000).

Also among the 69 finalists for the prize, compiled by global library nominations and awarded to the best work of English fiction, are Endling by Maria Reva, The Weather Diviner by Elizabeth Murphy and What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, translated from French by Pablo Strauss.

For the complete list of nominations, see wfp.to/dublin.

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Canada Post has honoured six Canadian graphic novelists with a series of stamps highlighting their work.

The new set of stamps, which are now available via Canada Post outlets and online, features new work by Kate Beaton, Julie Doucet, Guy Delisle, Jimmy Beaulieu, Bryan Lee O’Malley and Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas.

This is the second set of stamps to feature graphic novelists, after last year’s series which featured art by Set, Chester Brown and Michel Rabagliati as well as cousins Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.

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An event slated to feature a new imprint highlighting Indigenous and non-Indigenous writers whose work reflects the country’s diversity of literary voices slated to take place Wednesday at McNally Robinson Booksellers’ Grant Park location has been cancelled.

Kanata Classics’ first six titles feature both fiction and non-fiction titles with new introductions and packaging. The event was to have featured Jordan Abel and his work of non-fiction, Nishga, originally published in 2021, as well as Kim Thúy’s 2009 novel Ru, originally published in French in 2009 and released in English in 2012, as well as writers of the two new introductions, David Chariandy and Sharon Bala, respectively.

McClelland & Stewart publisher Stephanie Sinclair, who spearheaded the imprint’s creation, was also scheduled to appear.

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The Writers’ Trust of Canada’s 2025 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy has been awarded to Vancouver’s Vince Beiser for his book Power Metal: The Race for the Resources That Will Shape The Future.

The $70,000 prize is awarded to a work which “advances and influences policy debates on a wide range of social, political, economic, or cultural topics relevant to Canadians.”

Beiser’s book explores how the metals required for advancing technology and energy, including “greener” initiatives, are wreaking havoc on people and the planet the world over.

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Pulp Literature has announced the winners of the 2025 Raven Short Story Contest, with Interlake author Mitchell Toews nabbing the first runner-up spot for his story Second Helping at Conchita’s Diner.

The winner was Avery Other of Lincoln, Neb. for the story This is Magic, while second runner-up went to Vancouver’s Niloufar-Lily Soltani for Pahlavan and The Nightingale.

Also among the shortlisted authors was Winnipeg writer and Free Press copy editor David Jón Fuller for his story Upon Reflection.

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