National Network for Equitable Library Service

2017 Arthur Ellis Award, Best Nonfiction Book — Winner A sinister plot by a young woman left her mother dead and her father riddled with bullets. From the outside looking in, Jennifer Pan seemed like a model daughter living a perfect life. The ideal child, the one her immigrant parents saw, was studying to become a pharmacist at the University of Toronto. But there was a dark, deceptive side to the angelic young woman. In reality, Jennifer spent her days in the arms of her high school sweetheart, Daniel.

#1 Edmonton Journal Bestseller! • 2017 Alberta Literary Awards, the Wilfrid Eggleston Award for Nonfiction — Winner Rachel Notley’s dramatic triumph over Alberta’s Conservative regime was an early rumble before the Trudeau landslide. Alberta has long been seen as politically paralyzed. But it has always been a cauldron of discontent, producing the Reform Party, the Wildrose movement, the modern Conservative Party of Canada, and Stephen Harper. Notley Nation tells how this pent-up energy exploded in an unexpected direction with Rachel Notley’s NDP victory.

Novelist, diplomat, statesman, representative of both the First Nations and the Crown in Canada, James Bartleman always writes from his incredible personal experience. Presented here are three extraordinary books, each touching on a different aspect of his life, whether a candid tell-all about the halls of power, or his unique novels in which the names and details have been changed to protect the innocent. Guaranteed to captivate readers of all stripes.

A year in the desperate life of a boy transformed by OCD from a bright ten-year-old into a stranger in his own skin. Although Laurie Gough was an intrepid traveller who had explored wild, far-off reaches of the globe, the journey she and her family took in their own home in their small Quebec village proved to be far more frightening, strange, and foreign than any land she had ever visited.

An unflinching analysis of one of the major issues of our time — the shift from criminalization to regulation of recreational drugs. The “war on drugs” has failed. The cost of trying to control the production, sale, and use of recreational drugs through the criminal law is too high: unjust incarceration, illicit markets, tainted substances, exploited children, and an untaxed industry. But there is an alternative.

Terry Boyle is an incomparable observer of Ontario’s charming side, and its ghostly shadows. Presented here are five of his must-read guides for Ontarians everywhere interested in getting off the beaten track. Includes: Discover Ontario Hidden Ontario Haunted Ontario Haunted Ontario 3 Haunted Ontario 4

The Hill Times: Best Books of 2016 A new, expanded edition of the first-ever primer on Canada’s Constitution — for anyone who wants to understand the supreme law of the land. The Canadian Constitution makes Canada’s Constitution readily accessible to readers. It includes the complete text of the Constitution Acts of 1867 and 1982 accompanied by an explanation of what each section means, along with a glossary of key terms, a short history of the Constitution, and a timeline of important constitutional events.

Three titles in Andrew Hind and Maria Da Silva’s acclaimed series on the local history, maritime colour, and even the shadowy side of Ontario’s most picturesque communities. From ghost towns to actual ghosts, the unexpected abounds in this collection of the most surprising corners of Ontario — a must for cottagers and local-history lovers, brought to you by two of the best! Includes: RMS Segwun Ghost Towns of Muskoka Ghosts of Niagara-on-the-Lake

Mazo de la Roche, author of the acclaimed Jalna series, is revealed in the writings of two luminaries on the subject: author Heather Kirk, and Mazo herself. This bundle unites Kirk’s groundbreaking biography of de la Roche with the great Canadian author’s memoirs, rereleased now after their original 1957 publication. Includes: Ringing the Changes First published in 1957, Mazo de la Roche’s last autobiography is a vivid look at her life in Ontario, and a parting shot at her critics.

A National Bestseller • The Hill Times: Best Books of 2016 This unauthorized biography provides a rare look at the real Justin Trudeau, retracing his steps from his early days to the height of power. Having grown up in the shadow of his famous father, a political giant who dominated Canadian politics for almost sixteen years, Justin Trudeau took many detours before discovering that he was a natural politician, with qualities, such as a charismatic ease with the public, that his father never possessed. Yet to most Canadians, Trudeau remains a blank slate.