National Network for Equitable Library Service

Fighting words . . . Lainie and Mariam have it out for each other, so it’s no surprise when they finally come to violent blows in the middle of their high school’s drama room. That’s when Caddell Morris, an ex-professional actor and newly minted student teacher, steps in. By teaching the girls the art of stage combat, he hopes to help them understand more about the roots and costs of violence. But when he convinces the drama teacher to let them play Mercutio and Tybalt in their school production of Romeo and Juliet, swords, words, and egos battle and clash.

Thinking to find peace from his troubles, Christian realizes his brother still resents him for leaving with their mother years ago, and he struggles to fight those haunting memories. But the past has ways of coming back, and soon Christian finds himself struggling to separate memory from reality. As two interlaced stories become one, the courtship and marriage of Joe and Marty Miller and the reunion of their two sons, the haunting reality of childhood and loss strikes with a vengeance.

She keeps a tight list and doesn't let anything go unchecked, except for one important misplaced item: a favour to her neighbour. With this broken promise, a series of events unfolds that lead to her friend's death. Was the death preventable had the task been completed? A Governor General's Literary Award–winning play, The List is the riveting story of a woman haunted by internal regret when she fails to critically prioritize her world.

Skin introduces us to a group of Canadian teenagers who are coming of age in the late 1980s. Faced with racial discrimination, Phiroza, Jennifer, and Tuan must navigate the choppy waters of high school, each confronting his or her own set of challenges. Ranging from academic difficulties, to budding relationships, to the trials of adapting to a foreign language and culture, the three share their stories of struggle, survival, and defiance of negative expectations and racist attitudes. Lenny is at the top of her class. Jace seemingly couldn't care less.

It’s December 1979 and Clark’s minority Progressive Conservative government is under threat of dissolution before it has a chance to accomplish anything — even pass a budget. But Clark is young and idealistic, resolute on making his mark in office. When he steals a moment at his desk to make a crucial decision, his colleagues, including Brian Mulroney and Pierre Trudeau, take the opportunity to steer him in different directions.

Ernie and Twink are in the autumn of their lives. In celebration of their thirtieth wedding anniversary, the couple's children send them on a Caribbean cruise. Free of chores and children, Ernie and Twink are wined, dined, and introduced to exciting people. When they meet the rich, seductive Blake and Beth, who still seem to have a perfect life together after ten years of marriage, Twink becomes infatuated with the glamour of the other couple's lives and seeks to reignite the spark in her own marriage.

In this lyrical masterpiece, four cousins reunite in Jamaica to mourn the passing of their grandmother and to celebrate the times they shared together. There's vilma, an up-and-coming politician; kris, a celebrity chef; tyetye, who's incarcerated; and likklebit, who's immigrated to Canada. As the cousins reminisce about the woman who had such a strong role in rearing them, they uncover their troubles and begin to fulfill grannie's last task: to bring them back in tune with themselves.

The day after their friend Cathy’s funeral, Margot, Tate, and Connie gather for a round of golf in honour of their recently departed fourth. There, they are joined by another woman, an old friend of Cathy’s they’d never met. Over the course of eighteen holes, secrets and confessions unravel as the women discuss love, sex, children, and everything in between. A funny, fast-paced, heartwarming story of friendship inspired by The Foursome.

Paul is asked to drive his wife's 93-year-old Grandpa "Bud" all the way from Calgary to his retirement trailer in Mesa, Arizona. Paul hopes to find strange, roadside diners and sleep out under the stars. Bud wants Denny's and Motel 6. Paul and Bud spend five days together, navigating the predictable turnoffs on the Interstate while discovering their need for each other, sharing their lives and experiences, their hopes and dreams. This will be Bud's final year in Mesa, and Paul is his chauffeur.

Giving his characters life in a whirlwind of words, Daniel MacIvor showcases his talents as a writer and performer in two of his most celebrated solo shows. Published here for the first time in their newly revised scripts, House and Here Lies Henry seethe with anger and soothe with comedy.In House, Victor drags his audience through his life, his fantasies, his desires, and his recent push to the edge. Here Lies Henry is a story about a man alone on a room with a mission to tell you something you don't already know.