SLIDESHOW: Pets of the Week

Free Press arts team shares books for passing the dog days

When most people mention a “summer read” or a “beach book,” the types of writing they’re referring to is lighter fare most of us would consider enjoyable but not overly profound: think cosy mysteries, historical bodice rippers, otherworldy romantasies, fast-paced whodunits, chilling (but not too chilling) horror and, notably as of late, romance novels of all persuasions — perhaps, say, between two hockey players?

But not everyone dives into such popular picks over the summer months. Here’s what the Free Press arts and life team has been poring over in the past months…

Temporary Palaces, by Jeff Miller

If you spent your youth in the late 1990s/early 2000s going to protests, making zines, DIY art or punk rock — or, failing that, reading about it all in Adbusters magazine — and consider yourself a hopeless romantic, this new novel from Nova Scotia’s Jeff Miller is for you. Themes of idealism, artistic integrity, heartbreak and shared trauma are all on the menu for this will-they-won’t they pairing of punk rocker Ben and visual artist Alex, set amid the squats of Ottawa and the art lofts of Montreal.

Frustration mounts as drug raids sweep problems out of downtown, into West End

West End business owners say their neighbourhood has been under siege for months, and some believe downtown police drug sweeps have made things worse by pushing more street disorder in their direction — and pushing customers away.

Senior’s family frustrated by Manitoba Housing’s response to apartment’s bedbug infestation

The family of a senior who left his Manitoba Housing apartment after two years of bedbug infestations is accusing the provincial body of being ineffectual and irresponsible in its treatment of the persistent pests.

The senior had lived at the Columbus Courts building at 253 Edgeland Blvd., since 2011, but when he began getting severe skin rashes all over his body about two years ago, his son began to worry.

They found out the 14-storey building was being sprayed for bedbugs after an infestation had impacted several units. After multiple rounds of pesticide treatments, the problem has not subsided, the son told the Free Press.

“They come in, they spray pesticides and then they leave. And it’s been completely ineffectual,” he said. “My dad keeps seeing the bedbugs even the day after the treatments and continuously, they’ve just gotten worse and worse.”

The good, bad and record setting performance in Bombers loss to Elks

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ 22-19 defeat at the hands of the Edmonton Elks at Commonwealth Stadium in Alberta on Friday was fitting for all the wrong reasons.

The Bombers looked reinvigorated as they jumped out to a 16-point lead in the first half. Then some bad habits reared their ugly head, as the Elks roared back with 19 straight points before kicker Vincent Blanchard walked it off with a 40-yard field goal.

A night that began with so much promise left many fans to wonder what the ceiling actually is for this team in 2026.

On offence, Zach Collaros completed 19 of 30 passes for 219 yards, one touchdown and an interception; Brady Oliveira amassed 118 yards on 16 carries and added a pair of catches for 11 yards; and Nic Demski secured five grabs for 80 yards.

CRTC looking into high number of cellphone tornado alerts in Manitoba during June storm

Canada’s telecom regulator is investigating why some Manitobans received an “unusually high number” of tornado alerts on their cellphones when the province was hit by wild thunderstorms June 9.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has asked Pelmorex Corp., which operates the national Alert Ready system, and three wireless providers — Bell, Rogers and Telus — to answer a list of questions by Sept. 11.

“Commission staff have been informed of reports concerning tornado alerts that were issued in Winnipeg and southern Manitoba on 9 June 2026, in which members of the public reported receiving an unusually high number of wireless emergency alerts,” Simon Levasseur, the CRTC’s director of financial and multiplatform technology analysis, wrote in a letter dated Wednesday.

“Commission staff is gathering information on the event, any potential root causes that have been identified, as well as corrective actions that have or will be taken to address these causes.”