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The Shortest History of War by Gwynne Dyer
Acclaimed historian and military expert Gwynne Dyer tells the story of war from its earliest origins up to the present age of atom bombs and algorithms.
Dyer chronicles the advent of warfare in the first cities; the rise of inequality and tyranny as humans multiply; the thousand-year classical era of combat until the firearm and the Thirty Years’ War, which changed everything. He traces how the brief interlude of limited war before the popular revolutions of the eighteenth century ushered in “total war” — and how the devastation was halted by the shock of Hiroshima.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has punctured the longest stretch of peace between major powers since WWII. In a technologically advanced and hyper-connected world, we humans find ourselves in a most precarious position: under the heightened threats of climate change, nuclear war, and superpower rivalry. Far from another dry military history, The Shortest History of War synthesizes research from multiple fields of study and journalism into a highly readable, fast-paced, and enlightening read for anyone who wants to understand the role of war in the long human story — and how we can stop it from dominating our future.
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The Sugar Thief by Nancy Mauro
A delectable comedy about an imploding social media star, an Italian bakery, the treachery of fame, and the pink-frosted pastry at the heart of it all.
YouTuber Sabine Rose is a star about to go supernova. Her baking channel attracts millions, her production team agonizingly crafts her every moment, and her agent has nearly landed her a television series. But Sabine’s rise to superstardom needs a final push, and she has the perfect idea to get herself there: a well-documented visit home to her family’s bakery.
When Sabine and her chronically underappreciated producer, Wanda, arrive in Thunder Bay, the planned family reunion is quickly lost in chaos (and, as Wanda sees it, social media opportunity). Sabine’s father, the Rose family master baker, has just died. And he’s left behind a locked briefcase containing the secret pastry recipe that has made him a hometown legend.
On the cusp of going viral, Sabine finds herself unlocking the dark truths of her father’s past. Self-medicating one glass—and one handful of pharma-ceuticals—at a time, can she drag her fledgling celebrity into the big leagues before ever-loyal Wanda, sensing betrayal, turns the tables on her? Will the popular pastry and the family secrets it holds fall into the wrong hands? Or will it provide the salvation Sabine so badly needs?
Piped full of heartache and told with razor wit, The Sugar Thief is a skewering of contemporary narcissism and an ode to families that leave (almost) everything behind in search of a brighter future.
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We Are Still Here edited by Nahid Shahalimi
A collection of first-hand accounts from courageous Afghan women who refuse to be silenced in the face of the Taliban.
After decades of significant progress, the prospects of women and girls in Afghanistan are once again dependent on radical Islamists who reject gender equality. When the United States announced the end of their twenty-year occupation and the Taliban seized control of the country on August 15, 2021, a steep regression of social, political, and economic freedoms for women in the country began.
But just because a brutal regime has taken over doesn't mean Afghan women will stand by while their rights are stripped away. In We Are Still Here, artist and activist Nahid Shahalimi compiles the voices of thirteen powerful, insightful, and influential Afghan women who have worked as politicians, journalists, scientists, filmmakers, artists, coders, musicians, and more. As they reflect on their country's past, stories of their own upbringing and the ways they have been able to empower girls and women over the past two decades emerge. They report on the fear and pain caused by the impending loss of their homeland, but, above all, on what many girls and women in Afghanistan have already lost: freedom, self-determination, and joy.
The result is an arresting book that issues an appeal to remember Afghan girls and women and to show solidarity with them. Like us, they have a right to freedom and dignity, and together we must fight for their place in the free world because Afghanistan is only geographically distant. Extremist ideas know no limits.
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Lunchbox by Aviva Wittenberg
A must-have cookbook of lunches you can look forward to all morning long! 75+ fail-safe recipes (and oodles of strategies and tips) for delicious lunchboxes and bowls your whole family can enjoy.
Say goodbye to the same boring, limited lunch rotation, and hello to everyone’s new favorite meal of the day! Lunchbox has literally months’ worth of recipes for flavorful, filling, nutritious, and delicious meals—guaranteed to stay fresh until lunch. With chapters on Soups, Sandwiches, Salads, Warm Bowls, Cold Bowls, Handpies, and Brunch for Lunch—as well as simple, satisfying snacks and sweet treats to pack alongside—these straightforward recipes will get you out of your lunch rut for good.
Every recipe has a “Get Ahead” tip, calling out exactly what can be made ahead of time, as well as a “Packing Tip” on how to pack a balanced and beautiful lunchbox; the steps are fuss-free, and all ingredients can be found in your local grocery store. In addition to the recipes are lunch packing strategies and multi-week meal plans to help you efficiently plan your menu and your time, streamlining meal prep to avoid that stressful morning crunch. Special callouts are included—such as “Great for Kids”—and all recipes are completely nut-free. With plenty of vegan and vegetarian options, hot and cold weather seasonal suggestions, and freezer-friendly choices, too.
Lunchbox has something for everyone. Whether it’s back to the office or back to school, Lunchbox is packed with satisfying recipes and ideas to start your day off right.
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The Elephant on Karluv Bridge by Thomas Trofimuk
Set in Prague and narrated by the 600-year-old Charles Bridge, this novel begins with an lephant named Sál escaping the Prague Zoo. As the elephant moves through the beautiful Czech city, the lives of the men and women she meets are altered by the encounter. Each character is at a crossroads, and desperately seeking the wisdom they need to wrestle with profound questions—how to live, how to love, who to love, how to heal. And the elephant herself is haunted, as memories of her long-ago capture in Africa resurface.
Sál carries the narrative from one point of view to another: Vasha, a writer and night watchman at the zoo, and his wife Marta, a psychotherapist, confront the question of whether to have a child; Šárka, Marta’s patient and a dancer at the end of her career, is visited by a charming and often abrasive manifestation of the long-dead ballerina Anna Pavlova; Joseph, a clown and bouffon, performs on the Karlův Bridge itself, and he is about to be struck down (literally and figuratively) by a new love…
Through it all, Sál steals the show, wandering the streets in search of water and food, bearing her own share of sadness and painful memories as she struggles to find her way out of her bewildering predicament. Though she, like the humans she encounters, is free now to make her own choices, she is also displaced and lost.
Thomas Trofimuk’s novel masterfully convinces us to accept all the wonders contained in it: that a bridge can tell a story, that art is integral to our survival, that an elephant can scatter sudden flashes of insight in her wake, that there is no separation between the grief of elephants and the grief of humans.
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Meet Me in Cairo by Jim Kerr
In 1964, two best friends left their comfortable and sheltered life in small-town British Columbia to explore the world together. Short on cash but high on youthful hubris, they made their way through Europe, then to North Africa, then further on to the Middle East, and finally back home through Europe once more on just over two dollars a day. Following their travels, Meet Me in Cairo offers a rare first hand account of world historical moments, such as post-independence Algeria, pre-1967 War Jerusalem, and a divided Berlin, by two ragtag hitchhikers on the journey of a lifetime.
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The Artful Pie Project by Deb Garlick and Denise Marchessault
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Pie champion Denise Marchessault teams up with artist and photographer Deb Garlick for a visually stunning cookbook celebrating sweet and savoury pies. With whimsical illustrations and practical how—to images, The Artful Pie Project unlocks the secrets to a great pie.
(Pssst…it's all in the pastry!) Featuring over 50 recipes covering the pie spectrum from galettes, to pastry dumplings and slab crumbles?plus French Canadian classics such as Tourti�re and Tart au Sucre. Beyond pie, there are plenty of tips for dodging pie fails and creative ideas for using precious scraps of leftover dough. And because pies love company, there's a selection of accompaniments to partner with your favourite recipes. With mouth—watering photos and playful illustrations, The Artful Pie Project is sure to charm, and disarm, even the most apprehensive baker. |
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We Should Not Be Afraid of the Sky by Emma Hooper
An epic, boundary-pushing tale of five young women rebelling against an era that relies on their submission, from the acclaimed author of Etta and Otto and Russell and James.
During the golden age of the Roman Empire, five girls enjoy a modest childhood in their small Portuguese village. They race each other through lemon orchards and pick fresh fruit for the commander who overlooks his people from a large house on the hill. Though the girls are all raised by different families, there is one thing they know without a doubt: they are sisters.
What they don’t know is that their simple existence is about to be irrevocably changed. When soldiers abduct them from their village and bring them to the commander, the sisters are suddenly forced to confront long-buried secrets that reveal their lives to be anything but ordinary. Burgeoning on womanhood just as the Empire begins to show signs of crumbling around them, they soon find themselves at the centre of a deadly standoff and must part ways to fight their own battles in order to survive.
One of Emma Hooper’s most compelling novels yet, We Should Not Be Afraid of the Sky is bursting at the seams with abstract miracles, devastating tenderness, hope, desire, and treachery—with life and death in all their glory. Demonstrating both the force and fragility of human nature, Hooper urges us to consider how we’ll each face our own final hour, to examine what the end really means: is it something to fear, or is it a daring leap into the blaze of a new beginning?
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One Man in His Time – A Memoir by Michael Audain
The unlikely and riveting story of how a left-wing activist became one of BC’s most accomplished business leaders and philanthropists, championing projects in the visual arts and innovation in Canadian wildlife protection and sustainability.
