First Book The Miramichi Reader

Maker by Jim Upton

August 18, 2021 by Alison Manley

Nicole Fortin is on the cusp of realizing a long-held dream when her life takes a sudden turn. Instead of participating in the Olympic Games, she finds herself struggling to master the challenging physical demands of her job in an aerospace plant and win the confidence of her male colleagues.

The Joanne Gallant Interview

August 15, 2021 by James M. Fisher

Joanne Gallant is a pediatric nurse, wife and mother. She recently wrote her first book, A Womb in the Shape of a Heart, a memoir about her numerous miscarriages in her attempts to have children. A review of her book can be found here. It will be released by Nimbus Publishing in September 2021. She lives in Nova Scotia.

Home of the Floating Lily: Stories by Silmy Abdullah

July 18, 2021 by Noor Ferdous

Set in both Canada and Bangladesh, the eight stories in Home of the Floating Lily follow the lives of everyday people as they navigate the complexities of migration, displacement, love, friendship, and familial conflict.

We, Jane by Aimee Wall

May 14, 2021March 21, 2021 by Gemma Marr

There is so much to say about Aimee Wall’s debut novel We, Jane. In a tight 200 pages, Wall’s poetic prose chronicles the complicated relationships between women of different generations and life experiences. Through these connections, readers are exposed to the complex geography of reproductive rights and to legacies of local knowledge.

Dirty Birds by Morgan Murray*

January 13, 2021January 9, 2021 by Sarah Butland

In late 2008, as the world’s economy crumbles and Barack Obama ascends to the White House, the remarkably unremarkable Milton Ontario – not to be confused with Milton, Ontario – leaves his parents’ basement in Middle-of-Nowhere, Saskatchewan, and sets forth to find fame, fortune, and love in the Euro-lite electric sexuality of Montreal.

Throw Down Your Shadows by Deborah Hemmings

May 14, 2021September 24, 2020 by Ian Colford

What does it mean, to do the wrong thing for the right reasons? 16-year-old Winnie, the self-reliant narrator of Deborah Hemming’s taut novel Throw Down Your Shadows, is about to learn that painful lesson.

It’s summer, 2005. Winnie lives … Continue reading

2020 Shortlist: “The Very Best!” First Book

June 29, 2020 by James M. Fisher

Best First Book (Fiction or Non-Fiction)

Best First Book is one of the more interesting categories: I’m always wondering if the author has another book in them anytime soon, or was this just a one-off experience? What will their second … Continue reading

Pedestal by Gareth Mitton

May 10, 2020 by Bill Arnott

My introduction to sci-fi was The Muppet Show, Pigs in Space launching me into the genre. What followed were Star Wars and Buck Rogers – anything, really, with a John Williams or Queen soundtrack. I realize that doesn’t much … Continue reading

The Siobhan Jamison Interview

May 8, 2020 by James M. Fisher

EXCLUSIVE TO THE MIRAMICHI READER—Siobhan Jamison was born in Manchester to parents from Northern Ireland. She spent the 90’s living between Paris and Dublin but grew up in Toronto, where she currently resides and teaches at Seneca College. She is … Continue reading

This year, I thought I would streamline the entire process for selecting books for “The Very Best!” Book Awards. While maintaining a running … Continue reading

First Book