Testimonials
"I think it is important to undergo a study of what our writers are making. Canada is well-hidden from the world: a quiet, humble, unassuming place where nothing substantial occurs. This is wrong. We owe it to our future generations of artists to plant this seed and remind them that Canada is an artistic landscape worth making art in." - Ashton Carter, Algoma University English Student
"A community that reads together can grow together and become richer in its thought and deeper in its feeling. Algoma Reads can be the catalyst for the intellectual and emotional aspects of the university and the region of which it is a part." - Michael John DiSanto, Professor, Department of English
Book Club & Lectures
The Algoma Reads book club provides a unique opportunity for community members in Sault Ste. Marie and surrounding areas to discuss the books in-depth. The lectures will include guest speakers, from published authors to prominent community leaders.
Algoma Reads Course
The Algoma Reads courses (ENGL 1996/2996) invites students of all ages from across Algoma University's campus and the Algoma Region to read together the five novels selected by the CBC for Canada Reads. This course looks in-depth at each book on the Canada Reads short-list from multiple perspectives and disciplines and students will reflect on what each book can teach us.
About the Books.
Jonny Appleseed - Joshua Whitehead
Jonny Appleseed was the winner of the 2021 Canada Reads competition. This novel follows Jonny, a a gay Two Spirit indigiqueer Oji-Cree man. Living in Winnipeg as a sex worker Jonny has to scrape together enough money to return to Peguis First Nation for his step-father's funeral. A very impactful novel which not only sheds light on indigenous queer identity but also the concept of identity as a whole.
Jonny Appleseed was defended by Devery Jacobs in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
The Midnight Bargain - C. L. Polk
The Midnight Bargain is about Beatrice Clayborn, a sorceress in a society where women can't practice magic. She wants to be a Magus but her family want her to be married off, and married women lose their powers. As the novel unfolds, a rivalry, a summoned spirit, and a surprising love affair create a compelling narrative that is part fantasy, part romance, and wholly engrossing.
The Midnight Bargain was defended by Rosey Edeh in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
Butter Honey Pig Bread - Francesca Ekwuyasi
Butter Honey Pig Bread is a novel which spans three continents, three lives, and two generations. It follows a Nigerian family which has been fractured by trauma and the narrative is split between Kambirinachi and her twin daughters Kehinde and Tiaye as they attempt to repair the cracks in their pasts and their relationship. This novel is richly woven with musings on family, food, and the meaning of home from the interweaving perspectives of three engaging characters.
Butter Honey Pig Bread was defended by Roger Mooking in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
Two Trees Make a Forest - Jessica J. Lee
Two Trees Make a Forest begins with a letter from Lee's immigrant grandfather which kicks off a journey to Taiwan that sees her become closer to her past, her family, her culture, and the splendor of the natural world. In this novel Lee offers a very interesting and nuanced investigation of colonialism within a country which has been continuously colonised since the 1600s.
Two Trees Make a Forest was defended by Scott Helman in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
Two Trees Make a Forest begins with a letter from Lee's immigrant grandfather which kicks off a journey to Taiwan that sees her become closer to her past, her family, her culture, and the splendor of the natural world. In this novel Lee offers a very interesting and nuanced investigation of colonialism within a country which has been continuously colonised since the 1600s.
Two Trees Make a Forest was defended by Scott Helman in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
Hench - Natalie Zina Walschots
Anna works a mind-numbing low-level office job, and her boss is a literal monster, because she works under supervillains. Hench plays with the themes and implications of superhero comics, as Anna investigates the damage wrought by heroes and villains alike, and she uses her tech saviness and knowledge of Excel to enact change in the system. Walschots makes excellent use of superhero tropes to reflect our own society and to create a villainously gripping novel.
Hench was defended by Paul Sun-Hyung Lee in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
Anna works a mind-numbing low-level office job, and her boss is a literal monster, because she works under supervillains. Hench plays with the themes and implications of superhero comics, as Anna investigates the damage wrought by heroes and villains alike, and she uses her tech saviness and knowledge of Excel to enact change in the system. Walschots makes excellent use of superhero tropes to reflect our own society and to create a villainously gripping novel.
Hench was defended by Paul Sun-Hyung Lee in the 2021 'Canada Reads' competition.
The Early Access Program.Students in their senior year of high school are invited to participate in Algoma Reads through the Early Access Program.
EAP allows regional grade twelve high school students to take university classes, tuition free, and receive credits that can be counted during their first year of University studies at Algoma University. Students must apply to take part in the program. The deadline for the Fall term is TBD. Apply Online: https://www.algomau.ca/admissions/early-access-program/ |
Additional Requirements.Students are required to submit a transcript and a letter of reference from a teacher, counselor, or principal to be eligible for the program.
Students must have a minimum 80% average in their Grade 11 courses. Algoma Reads visited local high schools in Sault Ste. Marie to provide more information on the program.
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"Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it. It enriches the necessary competencies that daily life requires and provides; and in this respect, it irrigates the deserts that our lives have already become. ”