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Rebecca Wigod's sharp new biography of George Bowering speaks volumes about a complex figure

Bowering's friend Margaret Atwood has said, affectionately, that he hides his real self behind a goofy act, giving “a genial imitation of a man acting like a nincompoop”.

Thumbing a Ride retraces a long, strange trip through Canadian counterculture

Between 1970 and 1975, 100,000 hitchhikers a year passed through Winnipeg, headed in one direction or the other.

Alison Pick's Strangers With the Same Dream explores challenges faced by early 20th-century Jewish pioneers

Her new novel is set on Israel’s oldest kibbutz.

Arrival describes how Canadian literature came to a boil

Nick Mount does an excellent job of showing the roles of the different regions in the country’s writing.

A Temporary Stranger reflects Jamie Reid’s rich legacy

He was admired as a quiet, serious figure: a dedicated artist, not a mover and shaker.

Blood, Sweat, and Fear creates portrait of local crime-scene pioneer

The papers of the time liked to refer to Insp. John F.C.B. Vance as a hometown Sherlock Holmes.

Alisa Smith's novel Speakeasy houses a history of dark secrets

This first novel is a remarkable leap for a writer who often gets awards for journalism, but whose only previous book (the winner of multiple prizes) was The 100-Mile Diet.

Pioneering explorer Aloha Wanderwell lived large in an age of adventure

Idris Welsh (1906‒96), who grew up on Vancouver Island, assumed the forename Aloha because it had a romantic ring.

Our book critics weigh in with 2016 picks

Regular contributors to the Straight’s books section do their level best to boil down another fine year into one title each.

Vancouver Vanishes documents a city pulling its past apart

Local writers bring love and logic to the rapid disappearance of our domestic architectural heritage.