National Network for Equitable Library Service

A thought-provoking and brilliantly entertaining work of nonfiction, from one of the most acclaimed conjurors and gifted sleight-of-hand artists in a generation, the creator and star of the astonishing one-man show, In and of Itself. Conscious of his own rather mind-boggling ability to deceive others professionally, Derek DelGaudio believed that the artifice in his life was always reserved exclusively for the stage.

"In his widely anticipated memoir, Ai Weiwei-one of the world's most famous artists and activists-tells a century-long epic tale of China through the story of his own extraordinary life and the legacy of his father, Ai Qing, the nation's most celebrated poet.

In this exceptional memoir, bestselling author Nicola I. Campbell deftly weaves together rich poetry and vivid prose to illustrate what it means to be an intergenerational survivor of Indian Residential Schools.

This is a stunning debut, revealing how breaking silences and reconciling identity can refine anger into something both useful and beautiful. A poetic memoir that looks unflinchingly at childhood trauma (both incestuous rape and surviving exposure in extreme cold), it also tells the story of coming to terms with a hidden Indigenous identity when the poet discovered her Métis heritage at age 38. This collection is a journey of pain, belonging, hope, and resilience.

This poignant debut by Gavin Bradley explores the emotional toll of different kinds of separation: from a partner, a previously held sense of self, or a home and the people left behind. The main narrative describes the deterioration of a long-term relationship, interweaving poems dealing with the loneliness of immigration and the anxiety of separation from Northern Ireland, the poet's homeland.

Modern Fables is a darkly funny, feminist collection of essays about love and place. In this darkly funny book about love in the digital age, Mikka Jacobsen challenges the notion that a single woman in her thirties writing about love is simply desperate. Instead, in an unflinching collage of coming-of-age narratives, she both elevates singledom and upholds the value of finding profound love.

In Ghosts in a Photograph, award-winning nonfiction writer Myrna Kostash delves into the lives of her grandparents, all of whom moved from Galicia, now present-day Ukraine, to Alberta at the turn of the twentieth century.

In this challenging memoir about her formative years in Yellowknife in the '60s and '70s, author Margaret Macpherson lays bare her own white privilege, her multitude of unexamined microaggressions, and how her childhood was shaped by the colonialism and systemic racism that continues today. Macpherson's father, first a principal and later a federal government administrator, oversaw education in the NWT, including the high school Margaret attended with its attached hostel: a residential facility mostly housing Indigenous children.

An officer of Global Affairs Canada from 1990-2018, Geoff White is a career expert in Canadian foreign policy. In Working for Canada he shares that expertise, illuminating the often invisible work of creating and enacting international policy. Writing with clarity, wit, and common sense, White demystifies Canadian diplomacy and provides a clear view of how it actually works-and when it doesn't. Reflecting on the headlines, highlights, and sometimes scandals of a long and successful career, White offers a highly readable blend of personal recollection and political insight.

In Ordinary Deaths, Dr. Samuel LeBaron reminds us of our need for human connection when experiencing death and loss. Based on more than thirty years of working with children and adults dying from cancer, LeBaron's memoir contains stories of longing, confusion, love, and humility-often woven together. Sharing recollections from his childhood in rural Alberta and experiences from his career, LeBaron reveals a life of vital, intimate connection with others.