Literary

Vancouver is a literary hotspot. More than 1,500 authors live in the B.C. region and the province boasts the highest number of book readers anywhere in the country. As a centre of the publishing industry, the region produces about 250 books per year.

Vancouver's Famous Writers
The trio of George Woodcock, George Bowering and Bill Bissett have written more than 200 books. Local lad Douglas Coupland topped North American bestseller lists (and coined the moniker of a generation) with Generation X, and popular follow-up books like Eleanor Rigby and J-Pod. William Gibson has the science fiction market talking and Nick Bantock enjoys tremendous acclaim with his unique Griffin & Sabine trilogy. Evelyn Lau's Diary of a Runaway has been a runaway international success, and while Michael Turner is considered one of Canada's most original and versatile writers - his Hard Core Logo has been adapted to radio, stage and film. Timothy Taylor has garnered local, national and international plaudits for his literary output, most notably the novel Stanley Park .

Vancouver Public Library
(www.vpl.ca)
The best place in town to dip into the city's literary heritage, Vancouver's handsome, coliseum-shaped central library building quickly became a favourite local landmark when it opened its doors in 1995. Surrounded by cafes and coffee shops, it's a convivial spot for an afternoon of gentle browsing. While you're there, look out for some of the following Vancouver titles:

Non-Fiction

  • Best Places Vancouver by Kasey Wilson, an insider's guide to the best of the city.
  • Making Vancouver by Robert A.J. Macdonald, a scholarly history of the city's early development.
  • Kids' Vancouver: Things to See and Things to Do for Kids of Every Age by Victoria Bushnell, a guide to family-friendly attractions and activities in Greater Vancouver.
  • From Naked Ape to Super Species: A Personal Perspective on Humanity and the Global Eco-crisis by David Suzuki, a state-of-the-environment plea from the famed local ecologist.
  • City of Glass by Douglas Coupland, a colourful and quirky homage to Vancouver from one of the city's most famous living writers.
  • The Corporation by Joel Backan, a pressing and evocative examination of the role of "psychotic" corporations around the world.

Fiction

  • Runaway: Diary of a Street Kid by Evelyn Lau, an honour student when she ran away from home for a life of prostitution at the age of 14, Lau's personal experience became the basis for this novel of life on the streets.
  • Generation X by Douglas Coupland, the book that labelled a generation is the satirical story of three underemployed and overeducated young refugees from yuppie wannabeeism.
  • Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence by Nick Bantock, the story of a bizarre correspondence, in which the postcards and letters are part art, part story and wholly imaginative.
  • Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor, relating modern-day Vancouver through a story that mixes the life of a local chef with the park's dark secrets.
  • The Jade Peony by Wayson Choy, a searing portrayal of growing up in a Vancouver Chinese immigrant family in the 1930s.
  • Bachelor Brother's Bed and Breakfast by Bill Richardson, a humourous tale of a rustic bed and breakfast devoted to books and hosting a curious assortment of characters.
  • Obasan by Joy Kogawa, relating the internment of Japanese Canadians in B.C. during World War II.
  • The Vancouver Stories, an evocative series of short stories on the city by, among others, Douglas Coupland, Alice Munro, Ethel Wilson, Malcolm Lowry, William Gibson and Timothy Taylor.

Story idea
The Vancouver house where Joy Kogawa (www.kogawahouse.com) grew up in has recently been saved from demolition and will become a literary study centre. Using the story of the house as a hook, consider a story tracing some of the other Vancouver buildings that have links to local authors.
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