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North American Literature: Canada

Research guide covering literature of North America.

Canadian Literature

This page covers Canadian literature. McKee Library's collection includes numerous titles by Canadian authors. We have included a selection of these titles in our reading list, linked below. The resources below cover the general topic, however, more information is available if you search for individual authors by name in the databases. 

Resources

Margaret Atwood

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“Where have all the Lady Macbeths gone?” wondered Margaret Atwood. Her answer came in the form of Zienia, the predatory protagonist of The Robber Bride. In this interview, Canada’s preeminent novelist, poet, and critic discusses topics such as how she became a writer and how the women’s movement, World War II, and her home city of Toronto have influenced her writing. Excerpts from The Robber Bride—her witty recasting of the Grimms’ tale “The Robber Bridegroom”—and Cat’s Eye, read by actress Nadia Cameron, showcase the incisive and poetic nature of Atwood’s prose. (53 minutes)

The Handmaid's Tale

From the bestselling author of Alias Grace and the MaddAddam trilogy, here is the #1 New York Times bestseller and seminal work of speculative fiction from the Booker Prize-winning author. Now a Hulu series starring Elizabeth Moss, Samira Wiley, and Joseph Fiennes. Includes a new introduction by Margaret Atwood. Look for The Testaments, the sequel to The Handmaid's Tale, coming September 2019. Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the days before, when she lived and made love with her husband Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now.... Funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing, The Handmaid's Tale is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and literary tour de force.

The Testaments

NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER * WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE * The Testaments is a modern masterpiece, a powerful novel that can be read on its own or as a companion to Margaret Atwood's classic, The Handmaid's Tale. More than fifteen years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale, the theocratic regime of the Republic of Gilead maintains its grip on power, but there are signs it is beginning to rot from within. At this crucial moment, the lives of three radically different women converge, with potentially explosive results.   Two have grown up as part of the first generation to come of age in the new order. The testimonies of these two young women are joined by a third: Aunt Lydia.  Her complex past and uncertain future unfold in surprising and pivotal ways.   With The Testaments, Margaret Atwood opens up the innermost workings of Gilead, as each woman is forced to come to terms with who she is, and how far she will go for what she believes.

The Heart Goes Last

Margaret Atwood puts the human heart to the ultimate test in an utterly brilliant new novel that is as visionary as The Handmaid's Tale and as richly imagined as The Blind Assassin.      Stan and Charmaine are a married couple trying to stay afloat in the midst of an economic and social collapse. Job loss has forced them to live in their car, leaving them vulnerable to roving gangs. They desperately need to turn their situation around--and fast. The Positron Project in the town of Consilience seems to be the answer to their prayers. No one is unemployed and everyone gets a comfortable, clean house to live in . . . for six months out of the year. On alternating months, residents of Consilience must leave their homes and function as inmates in the Positron prison system. Once their month of service in the prison is completed, they can return to their "civilian" homes.      At first, this doesn't seem like too much of a sacrifice to make in order to have a roof over one's head and food to eat. But when Charmaine becomes romantically involved with the man who lives in their house during the months when she and Stan are in the prison, a series of troubling events unfolds, putting Stan's life in danger. With each passing day, Positron looks less like a prayer answered and more like a chilling prophecy fulfilled.

Gabrielle Roy

Gabrielle Roy

This documentary is about one of Canada's most important woman of letters. A visual and intellectual delight, this film is a tribute to the highly acclaimed literary works and fascinating life of Gabrielle Roy. Gabrielle Roy was a fiercely independent woman who defied her destiny and broke gender boundaries in post-war Canada. She was a modern writer and reporter ahead of her time. Award-winning director Léa Pool captures the fragility and greatness of Gabrielle Roy's life by travelling to the places that served as a backdrop for her singular journey.

Earle Birney

Earle Birney: Portrait of a Poet

The late Earle Birney served as a personnel officer in the Canadian Army during World War II and is the two-time recipient of the Governor General’s Award, Canada’s top literary honor, for his poetry. This writer, scholar, and activist is revered as the grand old man of Canadian poetry. In this intimate profile, Birney speaks lovingly of his craft and explains the process of translating poetic inspiration into a successful work of art. Highlighting this classic documentary are excerpts from his moving epic David, the lyric poem “From the Hazel Bough,” and Alaska Passage, which Birney performs with the percussion group NEXUS. (53 minutes)