Episode 323 - Sarah Louise Butler
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
In her second novel Rufous and Calliope (Douglas & McIntyre), a cartographer with a novel form of dementia attempts to cross a perilous mountain pass, seeking the treehouse hideaway where he spent one memorable childhood summer on the run with his three older siblings and his twin sister, Calliope. Released fall 2025, and recently shortlisted for the Ethel Wilson Fiction prize. The French edition Ciel Noir, Coeurs Battants was released in February 2026.
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Episode 322 - Betty Baxter
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
When Betty Baxter was hired to coach the Canadian women’s volleyball team in 1980, she was met with a media frenzy as the first woman in the position. Then her career was cut short—Baxter was fired in January 1982 and tossed from volleyball at age twenty-nine because of rumours about her sexual orientation. This personal memoir chronicles Baxter’s journey from a small-town prairie girl discovering her passion for sports, through the years of international success, including harsh coaches, excruciating training regimes and the inequities in the sports system, especially for a closeted gay...
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Episode 321 - Joanne and Shirley
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
Shirley is only five years old when she is taken away by the Indian agent to live at a residential school. She loves learning, but she is not there by choice. From the first day walking up the long, lonely stone steps of the school building, life is hard and full of rules. Separated from her brothers and sisters, she is truly on her own. Shirley is very brave, but there is no one she loves to hold her at night when she is afraid. No one to tuck her in and comfort her. Shirley keeps going despite the sadness. She makes friends and has adventures. And most of all, she looks ahead to...
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Episode 320 - Robert Hough
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
In this compelling novel, acclaimed author Robert Hough recreates the political violence and revolutionary idealism that flowed through New York City during the Gilded Age of the 1890s. At its centre are real-life revolutionists Emma Goldman and Alexander “Sasha” Berkman, whose passionate love affair fuels their commitment to creating a better world.
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Episode 319 - Crystal Shawanda
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
Crystal Shawanda is an Ojibwe Potawatomi blues and country music artist from Canada. CMT documented her rise to fame in the six-part series Crystal: Living the Dream, which was broadcast in February 2008.
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Episode 318 - Ben Ladouceur
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
The first novel from award-winning poet Ben Ladouceur, I Remember Lights depicts a time when the world promised everything to everyone, however irresponsibly. In summer 1967, love is all you need…but some forms of love are criminal. As the spectacular Expo 67 celebrations take shape, a young man new to Montreal learns about gay life from cruising partners, one-night stands, live-in lovers, and friends.
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Episode 317 - Russel Thornton
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
His book House Built of Rain (2003) was a shortlisted nominee for the 2004 Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize and the 2004 ReLit Award.
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Episode 316 - Rebekah Martin
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
Creating dark, pop‑inspired illustrations and write poetry that leans into the bittersweet and the bizarre. Also running Lobotomy Press, where she publishes poetry, art, and chapter books.
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Episode 315 - Felicia Fox
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
Food, with Felicia Fox
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Episode 314 - Monica Goertzen Hertlein
Talkingbooksandstuff's podcast
Author of Star-Crossed Alliance and A Valley Girl Dilemma
info_outlineIn her second novel Rufous and Calliope (Douglas & McIntyre), a cartographer with a novel form of dementia attempts to cross a perilous mountain pass, seeking the treehouse hideaway where he spent one memorable childhood summer on the run with his three older siblings and his twin sister, Calliope. Released fall 2025, and recently shortlisted for the Ethel Wilson Fiction prize. The French edition Ciel Noir, Coeurs Battants was released in February 2026.