The 15th edition of CBC's popular tournament of books, Canada Reads, is shaping up to be an exciting one. Popular 2015 host, broadcaster, author and activist Wab Kinew will return to referee the sometimes hot-blooded debates.
The theme of the 2016 competition will be "starting over", and the longlist honours that theme with books featuring stories of second chances, new starts, immigrations, loss and a dazzling variety of changes and evolutions for their diverse characters. Some titles are familiar favourites, while others will be new to most listeners.
Panelists will be selected by CBC, who will in turn select their favourite title from the longlist to defend over the course of four days of vigorous discussion. Each day, one book will be eliminated by a vote amongst the panelists until a single title is left to claim the crown — one which, historically, has meant an enormous increase in sales and profile for its author.
The CBC Canada Reads longlisted books are:
All the Broken Things by Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer (Vintage Canada)
The Amazing Absorbing Boy by Rabindranath Maharaj (Vintage Canada)
Birdie by Tracey Lindberg (HarperCollins)
Bone and Bread by Saleema Nawaz (House of Anansi Press)
Buying on Time by Antanas Sileika (The Porcupine’s Quill)
The Hero’s Walk by Anita Rau Badami (Vintage Canada)
The Illegal by Lawrence Hill (HarperCollins)
Landing Gear by Kate Pullinger (Anchor Canada)
Minister Without Portfolio by Michael Winter (Penguin Canada)
The Outside Circle by Patti LaBoucane-Benson, illustrated by Kelly Mellings (House of Anansi Press)
Niko by Dimitri Nasrallah (Esplanade Books/Véhicule Press)
Sitting Practice by Caroline Adderson (Dundurn Press/Thomas Allen Publishers)
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (HarperCollins)
Swamp Angel by Ethel Wilson (McClelland & Stewart/New Canadian Library)
Sweetland by Michael Crummey (Anchor Canada)
The panel and the final five books will be announced on January 20, 2016, and the debates will air over four days from March 21 to 24 on CBC TV and online at CBC Books, as well on on CBC Radio One.
Stay tuned to Open Book for Canada Reads news in 2016!
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