St. Albert readers will get to debate which books are the best this Friday as a popular Canadian challenge comes to the city library.
Up to 60 people will be at the St. Albert Public Library’s downtown location this March 14 for the local Canada Reads competition.
CBC hosts a week-long Survivor-style challenge each year called Canada Reads where it has celebrities champion different books by Canadian authors, explained Julie Ruel of the St. Albert Public Library in an email. Panellists vote one book off the proverbial island each day until they are left with a single book they say everyone in the country should read.
The St. Albert edition of this game boils it down to one night, Ruel said. Five St. Albert-area celebrities will each defend a different book from this year’s challenge, and the audience will vote on which book is their favourite. One lucky guest will get to take home a copy of all five books.
“This program is a wonderful way to have St. Albert voices included in the debate,” Ruel said.
“It is always fun to see if our community agrees with what plays out on the CBC.”
On deck for this year’s debate are:
- Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper, defended by Katie Bickell, who served as the Regional Writer in Residence for the St. Albert and Strathcona County libraries in 2024;
- Jennie’s Boy by Wayne Johnston, defended by Amanda Patrick, the organizer of St. Albert’s Run-Walk for Reconciliation;
- Watch Out for Her by Samantha M. Bailey, defended by St. Albert MLA Marie Renaud;
- A Two-Spirit Journey by Ma-Nee Chacaby, defended by former St. Albert Youth Advisory Committee member James Rossmann;
- and Dandelion by Jamie Chan Yun Liew, defended by Tuval Nafshi.
Nafshi, who works as the prevention co-ordinator for the City of St. Albert, said he signed up for this challenge because he was a fan of books and Canada Reads.
“I love libraries, I love books, and I love having an opinion.”
Nafshi said his book was about a Chinese family living in B.C. in the 1980s as observed through the eyes of their eldest daughter.
“The two parents have such different relations to immigration,” he said, in that the mother feels far from home while the father wants to make Canada his home.
Nafshi said he immigrated to Canada himself at around the same age as the book’s narrator. He found the book’s insights on ethnicity and class structures fascinating, and said it was a great way step outside your everyday life and gain new understanding of what it means to be Canadian.
“I would want everyone to read a book like this.”
Nafshi said he was excited to hear the other panellists defend their books, adding that he planned to read all of them.
While the library does have copies of this year’s Canada Reads books, Ruel said they were very popular and all out on loan as of March 6.
Canada Reads @ the Library runs from 7 to 8:30 p.m. March 14 at the downtown library. Visit sapl.libcal.com/event/3841662 to register.
