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The country and the game : 30,000 miles of hockey stories / by Shuker, Ronnie,author.;
"A joyful, beautifully written tribute to Canada's most salient features-hockey and geography. In the waning days of the pandemic, sportswriter Ronnie Shuker stuffed his skates, sticks, and backpack into his faithful automobile, Gumpy, named for legendary goaltender Gump Worsley, and set off on a 30,000-mile, coast-to-coast-to-coast investigation of the many ways hockey touches the lives of Canadians. From St. John's, home of hockey's most colorful father-son combo, to a frigid barn in Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, and the world's largest hockey stick in Duncan, British Columbia, Shuker goes in search of people and places where Canada and hockey intersect on the road. Along the way, he hits famous sites of hockey lore, from the cradle of the game in Windsor, Nova Scotia, to Brantford, Ontario, where streets, highways, schools, and much else bear the name Gretzky, to Vancouver, site of the infamous 1994 and 2011 Canuck riots. But he also finds the game in unlikely places-crash sites, greenhouses, houseboats, memorials, backyard halls of fame, even a Hutterite colony-where a seemingly endless and always engaging cast of characters, including pros, semi-pros, beer-league veterans, family and fans, share unforgettable stories of how pucks have dented their lives."--
Subjects: Anecdotes.; Hockey;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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A season in Chezgh'un : a novel / by McLeod, Darrel J.,author.;
"A subversive novel by acclaimed Cree author Darrel J. McLeod, infused with the contradictory triumph and pain of finding conventional success in a world that feels alien. James, a talented and conflicted Cree man from a tiny settlement in Northern Alberta, has settled into a comfortable middle-class life in Kitsilano, a trendy neighbourhood of Vancouver. He is living the life he had once dreamed of--travel, a charming circle of sophisticated friends, a promising career and a loving relationship with a caring man--but he chafes at being assimilated into mainstream society, removed from his people and culture. The untimely death of James's mother, his only link to his extended family and community, propels him into a quest to reconnect with his roots. He secures a job as a principal in a remote northern Dakelh community but quickly learns that life there isn't the fix he'd hoped it would be: His encounters with poverty, cultural disruption and abuse conjure ghosts from his past that drive him toward self-destruction. During the single year he spends in northern BC, James takes solace in the richness of the Dakelh culture--the indomitable spirit of the people, and the splendour of nature--all the while fighting to keep his dark side from destroying his life."--
Subjects: Psychological fiction.; Novels.; Friendship; Gay men; Indigenous children; Indigenous men; School principals; Teachers;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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At the speed of Gus / by Scrimger, Richard,1957-; Wong, Terry.;
Meet the compelling, charismatic 13-year-old Augustus Constantine, a boy whose mind (and mouth) operate at a different speed than the rest of society. Gus has ADHD, and he's on medication to help him focus. Misuse of his medication is a recipe for disaster. At the Speed of Gus takes readers through a frenetic, twist-filled day that is the result of that misuse. When we first meet Gus, he's putting his own special spin on morning announcements, much to the chagrin of school secretary Miss Funn (who's anything but) and Principal Gorby (who's getting tired of Gus's endless jokes and unfiltered stream of consciousness). After being suspended for three days as a result of these antics, Gus takes up his sister's invitation to take the ferry to Vancouver Island and meet at her college. Once on the ferry, Gus's thoughts begin to race. He's having trouble concentrating and can't calm down. The ride gets wilder and wilder, and the reader follows along at the speed of Gus's brain, until it's hard to tell what's real from what's imagined. A cautionary and sympathetic tale, with loads of insight and smart humour, this new novel from middle-grade master Richard Scrimger will reach so many kids who need to see that their brains are a gift, even when (sometimes especially when) they don't stay in the same lines as others.
Subjects: Humorous fiction.; Boys; Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Full disclosure : a novel / by McLachlin, Beverley M.,author.;
"When everyone has something to hide, the truth is the only defense. There's nothing Jilly Truitt likes more than winning a case, especially against her former mentor, prosecutor Cy Kenge. Jilly has her own baggage, the residue of a dark time in a series of foster homes, but that's in the past. Now she's building her own criminal defense firm and making a name for herself as a feisty, tough-as-nails lawyer willing to take risks in the courtroom. When the affluent and enigmatic Vincent Trussardi is accused of his wife Laura's murder, Jilly agrees to defend him, despite predictions that the case is a sure loser and warnings from those close to her to stay away from the Trussardi family. Determined to prove everyone wrong, Jilly investigates Laura's death, hoping to discover a shred of evidence that might give the jury a reasonable doubt. But she is confronted by damning evidence and uncooperative witnesses at every turn. Someone isn't telling the truth, but whom? With her reputation and Vincent's life on the line, Jilly tries to unravel the web of secrets surrounding Laura's murder. But every answer leads to another mystery, and as Jilly digs deeper, she uncovers a startling revelation that will change not only the case, but her life forever. From the gritty streets of Vancouver to the fateful halls of justice, Full Disclosure is a razor-sharp thriller that pulses with authenticity and intrigue."--
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Legal fiction (Literature); Women lawyers; Attorney and client; Murder;
Available copies: 2 / Total copies: 3
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She's a lamb! A Novel [electronic resource] : by Hambrock, Meredith.aut; CloudLibrary;
A darkly comic suspense in the vein of All’s Well and Yellowface, She’s a Lamb! is an edgy and incisive novel that marches toward showtime with a growing unease about the dangers of magical thinking and the depths of delusion Jessamyn St. Germain is meant to be a star. Not an actor who occasionally books yogurt commercials and certainly not a lowly usher at one of Vancouver’s smallest regional theaters. No, she is bound for greatness, and that’s why the part of Maria in the theater’s upcoming production of The Sound of Music is hers. Or it’s going to be. Jessamyn may have been relegated to the position of childminder for the little brats playing the von Trapp children, but it’s so obvious she’s there for a different reason — the director wants her close to the role so when Samantha, the lead, inevitably fails, Jessamyn will be there to take her place in the spotlight. This must be it. Because if it isn’t, well, then every skipped meal, every brutal rehearsal, every inch won against a man attempting to drag her down will have all been for nothing. Sharp, relentless, and darkly funny, She’s a Lamb! is a cutting satire about the grotesque pall patriarchy casts over one woman’s delusional quest to achieve her dreams and the depths she will sink to for a chance at the life she’s convinced she deserves.General adult.
Subjects: Electronic books.; Thrillers; Black Humor; Contemporary Women; Satire;
© 2025., ECW Press,
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Tell me pleasant things about immortality : stories / by Wong, Lindsay,author.;
"From the bestselling, Canada Reads-shortlisted author of The Woo-Woo comes a wild, darkly hilarious, and poignant collection of immigrant horror stories. They'll haunt and consume you--in strange and unsettling ways. Living forever isn't everything it's cracked up to be. Hearts can still break, looks can still fade, and money still matters, even in eternity. The ghosts, zombies, and demons in this collection are all shockingly human, and they're ready to spill their guts. Vanity, love, and tragedy are all candidly explored as the unfulfilled desires of the dead are echoed in the lives of modern-day immigrants. Story-by-story, the line between ghost and human, life and death, becomes increasingly blurred. There's a courtesan from 17th century China who, try as she might, just can't manage to die. Grandmama Wu, who returns from the dead to protect her grandchildren from bullies. Not to mention an Internet-order bride who inadvertently brings the apocalypse to Nebraska City. From Shanghai to Vancouver, the women in this collection haunt and are haunted--by first loves, troublesome family members, and traumatic memories. Intertwining horror, the supernatural, and mythology, Tell Me Pleasant Things about Immortality riotously critiques contemporary life and fearlessly illuminates the ways in which the past can devour us. A collection about transformation and what makes us human, it solidifies Lindsay Wong as one of the most vital and electrifying voices in Canadian literature today."--
Subjects: Horror fiction.; Paranormal fiction.; Short stories.; Supernatural;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Overdose : heartbreak and hope in Canada's opioid crisis / by Perrin, Benjamin,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."An astonishing and powerful look at the ongoing opioid health crisis--the only book of its kind in Canada. North America is in the middle of a health crisis. The word 'Fentanyl' only recently entered common usage, and yet it has become a looming presence in news reports and conversations across Canada. It is an opioid more powerful and pervasive--and deadly--than any previous street drug. Often those suffering are marginalized people. Consider that in 2003, the SARS epidemic killed 44 people in Canada and launched a massive mobilization of public funds and resources to contain the outbreak. Over 100 times that number have been killed between 2016 and 2017 during the opioid crisis in Canada. Yet, the response has been far from proportionate. In fact, our policies are making things worse. The victims are many, and as we learn here, not only who we might expect. They are our neighbours: professionals, students, parents, and even health care workers. Despite the thousands of deaths, these victims remain largely invisible. But not anymore. Benjamin Perrin, a law and policy expert in Vancouver, BC--ground zero for the crisis--shines a light in this darkest of corners. What he finds challenges many assumptions about the people who use opioids, and the factors fuelling the crisis. Why do people use Fentanyl, where does it come from, and why can't we stop it? These questions, and many others being asked by all Canadians, are answered here in this urgent and humane look at the worst health crisis in recent history."--
Subjects: Opioid abuse; Fentanyl; Fentanyl; Opioids;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The longest road : to hell and back again from addiction to advocacy / by Calendino, Joe,author.; Little, Gary,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."Recovery is the longest road toward a better future. So says Joe Calendino, former full-patch Hells Angel and now award-winning youth community leader. In The Longest Road, Calendino remembers his journey to rock bottom, when he spiralled out of control, consumed by drugs and alcohol, ending up strung out and desperate in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Now, as executive director of Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative, it's his mission to protect at-risk youth from that same fate. In The Longest Road, Calendino keeps it raw and real -- he's the first to admit that his path to advocacy has been anything but straight. From the Hells Angels clubhouse to the darkest crack dens to the scene of a recent life-changing accident, Calendino reveals all his remarkable moments of struggle, intervention, recovery and redemption. Written with Calendino's trusted confidant and former high school counsellor Gary Little, and building on their first book together, To Hell and Back, this new memoir shares not just Calendino's story but also the stories of the hidden angels who saved his life and those of the young people he now strives to help. There are families who have lost loved ones to overdose, friends whose habits have landed them in gangs or in jail, and the call to action of a community that needs help, healing and hope -- now more than ever. With this page-turning memoir, Calendino shows he is living proof that sometimes all it takes is someone believing in you to completely change your life."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Calendino, Joe; Drug addiction; Drug addiction.; Drug addicts;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The good father : a novel / by Grady, Wayne,author.;
"From award-winning, bestselling author Wayne Grady comes The Good Father, his first contemporary novel, which comically and tragically reckons with a father and daughter's estrangement, the failures brought on by hubris, the limits of perception and the price we pay for second chances. Every story has two sides, two perspectives. And when it comes to a relationship between a daughter and her father, separated first by divorce and then by both generational gaps and physical and emotional distance, those perspectives can colossally diverge. Such is the case with Harry Bowes and his only daughter, Daphne. Harry is a mild mannered journalist turned teacher turned wine merchant who is content to putter around his home in Toronto eating things straight out of the fridge that both his doctor and his second wife, Elinor, would disapprove of, and procrastinate calling his daughter even though he senses something is amiss. Meanwhile, in Vancouver, Daphne seems intent on a course of nihilism, having gone from being a loving girl to a top student to a hostile young woman who is determined to destroy her life and relationships by self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. When a catastrophic event wrenches them out of their states, one of stasis and one of chaos, Harry and Daphne are forced to examine the ways in which their self-absorption has eroded their connection and discover whether a family's bond is truly ironclad or if their damage is irreparable. Told in alternating perspectives, The Good Father delivers a deeply satisfying and layered novel of love, perception, family and domesticity. Propelled by regret, compassion, frustration and comfort, this novel gives us Wayne Grady at the height of his powers."--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Fathers and daughters; Life change events;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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At the mountain's edge / by Graham, Genevieve,author.;
"From bestselling author Genevieve Graham comes a sweeping new historical novel of love, tragedy, and redemption set during the height of the Klondike Gold Rush. In 1897, the discovery of gold in the desolate reaches of the Yukon has the world abuzz with excitement, and thousands of prospectors swarm to the north seeking riches the likes of which have never been seen before. For Liza Peterson and her family, the gold rush is a chance for them to make a fortune by moving their general store business from Vancouver to Dawson City, the only established town in the Yukon. For Constable Ben Turner, a recent recruit of the North-West Mounted Police, upholding the law in a place overrun with guns, liquor, prostitutes, and thieves is an opportunity to escape a dark past and become the man of integrity he has always wanted to be. But the long, difficult journey over icy mountain passes and whitewater rapids is much more treacherous than Liza or Ben imagined, and neither is completely prepared for the forbidding north. As Liza's family nears the mountain's peak, a catastrophe strikes with fatal consequences, and not even the NWMP can help. Alone and desperate, Liza finally reaches Dawson City, only to find herself in a different kind of peril. Meanwhile, Ben, wracked with guilt over the accident on the trail, sees the chance to make things right. But just as love begins to grow, new dangers arise, threatening to separate the couple forever. Inspired by history as rich as the Klondike's gold, At the Mountain's Edge is an epic tale of romance and adventure about two people who must let go of the past not only to be together, but also to survive."--
Subjects: Historical fiction.; North West Mounted Police (Canada); Gold mines and mining; Man-woman relationships;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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