The great Canadian reading list: 150 books to read for Canada 150

What books do YOU want to see on the great Canadian reading list? CBC Books posed this question to Canadians online. Wecombined theanswers with recommendations from guests on The Next Chapter, Cross Country Checkup, books that were meaningful toprominentCanadiansand addedall 17 Canada Reads winners to buildthe ultimatereading list. Download the list as a PDF here.

This list is comprised of books available in English. If you're interested in books available in French, check out this listof 100 books fromRadio-Canada.

• The 150 bestselling Canadian books of the past 10 years

1. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, recommended by Shelagh Rogers

Also recommended by: @elenstangherlin,Jenn Passey,Karen Christine,Kathie Ramsey Hunter,@N_Squi,Pauline Vallee,Sue Lynn&Wendy Barker

• Shelagh Rogers remembers Richard Wagamese

2. A Great Reckoning by Louise Penny (Recommended by:Heather MacLeod,Marita Hannon,Mary Woods,Robin Harlick,Rose Penner, Wendy Barker,Julie Chuba& Kathleen Clements)

3. Firewater by Harold R. Johnson (Recommended by: Geri Patriquin)

4.Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien (Recommended by:Jenine Urquhart& @kathydinbc)

5. My Best Stories by Alice Munro, recommended by Eleanor Wachtel

Also recommended by:@DiSpeirs,Martha Beechie, @SarahMacJourno,Petra Young&Susan Munro

• 85 thingsyou might not know about Alice Munro

6.Susceptible byGenevive Castre (Recommended by: Wendy Barker)

7.The Game by Ken Dryden (Recommended by:@Tommy_Allen& Katie Jim)

8.Who Has Seen the byWindbyW.O. Mitchell (Recommended by: @DortheaHangaard,Laurel Hodgins, Shelley Southcott, @SarahMacJourno& Lisa Willner)

9.Whylah Falls by George Elliott Clarke, recommended by Perdita Felicien

• George Elliott Clarke on his biggest writing turn-ons

10.Obasan by Joy Kogawa(Recommended by:Linda Hulme Leahy&Ellen van der Hoeven)

11.Station Eleven byEmily St. John Mandel (Recommended by:Joan Koritko,Nancy Pendergast, Olivia,Shelley Kean& @audreywb)

12.The Inconvenient Indian byThomas King (Recommended by:Anne Dowson&Joyce Jackman)

13. Mabel Murple by Sheree Fitch, recommended byHance Colburne

Also recommended by:Sandra Ferguson & Barbara Beaver

14.The Disappeared byKim Echlin (Recommended by: @girlinthecityTO)

15.River Thieves byMichael Crummey (Recommended by:Andrea Paterson,Barbara Bethune,Bev Sanham Price,Kathie Ramsey Hunter& Teresa Reid)

16.The Right to Be Cold bySheila Watt-Cloutier (Recommended by:Ewa Ligia&ewazadar)

17.Montreal's Irish Mafia by D'Arcy O'Connor, recommended by Jay Baruchel

• Jay Baruchel joins Toronto comics publisher Chapterhouse Publishing

18.Medicine Walk byRichard Wagamese(Recommended byAndrea Hunt Gorgec,Jenn Passey, Jennifer Roswell,Kathie Ramsey Hunter,Lisa Willner, Sidney J. Frank,Mena Johnston&Misha Raven)

19. Town is by the Sea by Joanne Schwartz, illustrated by Sydney Smith (Recommended by: Angela Reynolds)

20.Love You Foreverby Robert Munsch, illustrated by Sheila McGraw(Recommended byChantal Antonakis&Emm Bee)

21.Fifth Business by Robertson Davies(Recommended byAlanna Jamieson,Carol Godard, @ChauDavid,Laurel Hodgins,Linda Hulme Leahy,Nicole Schmidt Peters,Shelley Kean&Kim Neudorf)

22.Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing byTomson Highway, recommended by Duncan McCue

Also recommended by:Ellen van der Hoeven

• Duncan McCue: 6 books that made a difference in my life

23.Unless byCarol Shields (Recommended by @DiSpeirs, @peggyflynn25& Kim Neudorf)

24.No Is Not Enough byNaomi Klein (Recsaiommended by Linda Evans, Nadine Dajani)

25.From the Fifteenth Districtby Mavis Gallant(Recommended byDurga Chew-Bose)

26.David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell, recommended by Shelley Joyce

• Writers & Company: Malcolm Gladwell turns his struggles into strength

27. Essex County by Jeff Lemire (Recommended by @TaraMurphy, @JoshCrewsReally& @Tommy_Allen)

28.Crow Lake by Mary Lawson (Recommended byAndrea Hunt Gorgec, @DiSpeirs,Pauline Vallee, @peggyflynn25&Kim Neudorf)

29.CockroachbyRawiHage(Recommended by@CPBeacon)

30.Calling Down the Skyby Rosanna Deerchild, recommended byJennifer Podemski

• Rosanna Deerchild shares her mother's residential school story through poetry

31.The Woefield Poultry Collective by Susan Juby(Recommended byAndrea Hunt Gorgec &Teresa Reid)

32.Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood(Recommended byAlvin Gongora, @JanRyeland,Chantal Antonakis& @peggyflynn25)

33. Saints & Misfits by S.K. Ali (Recommended by Kristilyn)

34. A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry, recommended by Nora Young

Also recommended by:Gail Edwards,Laura Warburton,Martha Beechie,Petra Young,Shelley Kean, @yolandabdacy,Tanis Orr Bergen,Barbara Bovaird& @sschleppe

• 100 novels that will make you proud to be Canadian

35.419 by Will Ferguson (Recommended byDolores O'Reilly)

36.Celia's Song by Lee Maracle(Recommended byGlenna Bagley& Lori Steele Maddigan)

37.One Hour in Paris by Karyn Freedman (Recommended byIleana Szymanski)

38.In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor Mat, recommended by Russell Bowers

• Gabor Mat: 5 books that changed my life

39.Birdie by Tracey Lindberg(Recommended byJane Margot)

40. Ru byKim Thy, translated by Sheila Fischman (Winner Canada Reads 2015, defended by Cameron Bailey)

41.Roughing it in the Bush Susanna Moodie(Recommended by @dortheahangaard& Donna Skinn)

42.Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat, recommended by Bruce Poon Tip

Also recommended by:Vala Monestime Belter

• Bruce Poon Tip shares 7 life-changing books

43.In the Skin of a Lion by Michael Ondaatje (Winner Canada Reads 2002, defended by Steven Page, recommended by @JulieGlaser3& Ellen Donnelly)

44.Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures by Vincent Lam (Recommended byKevin Longfield)

45.Half-Breed by Maria Campbell (Recommended byLori Steele Maddigan)

46. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, recommended byIfy Chiwetelu

Also recommended by:Deb Marshall,Laurel Hodgins, @SarahMacJourno&Susan Paddock

• 75 thingsyou might not know aboutLucy Maud Montgomery

47.Company Town by Madeline Ashby (Recommended by Wendy Barker)

48.New Tab by Guillaume Morissette (Recommended by @weiiilo)

49. The Illegal by Lawrence Hill (Winner Canada Reads 2016, defended by Clara Hughes)

50.North End Love Songs by Katherena Vermette, recommended by Bif Naked

• Bif Naked talks sex, love & being baptized into punk rock

51.Clara Callanby Richard B. Wright (Recommended by Fiona St. Jean&@audreywb)

52. Islands ofDecolonial Love by LeanneBetasamosake Simpson (Recommended byLori Steele Maddigan)

53.The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence (Recommended byGail Edwards, @super_crazy_kd, @kathydinbc,Linda Hulme Leahy,Nicole Schmidt Peters,Roxanne Lewis&Shelley Kean)

54.Saints of Big Harbour by Lynn Coady, recommended byWendy Bergfeldt

Also recommended by:Kathie Ramsey Hunter&Teresa Reid

• Lynn Coady on the power of Grease and good snacks

55.Take Us to Your Chief by Drew Hayden Taylor (Recommended byPatty Deline)

56.A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki (Recommended byShelley Kean& @kathydinbc)

57.Cool Water by Dianne Warren (Recommended byFiona St. Jean, Kim Neudorf& Wendy Barker)

58. This is Happy by Camilla Gibb, recommended by Chris dela Torre

• Camilla Gibb on the merits of unpopularity

59.The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier (Recommended byKatie Jim)

60. Jillian Jiggs by Phoebe Gilman (Recommended by Sandra Ferguson)

61. They Left Us Everything by Plum Johnson (Recommended byKim Neudorf)

62. The Reason You Walk by Wab Kinew (Recommended by @MeandMyKat&Susan Southcott Noiseaux)

63.The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt, recommended by Ron Sexmith

• Patrick deWitt on what should happen to unfunny people

64.The Diviners by Margaret Laurence (Recommended byGail Edwards, Kyra Collins, Laurel Hodgins,Lisa Willner &Petra Young)

65. #IndianLovePoems by Tenille Campbell (Recommended by @misswillow& @urbannativegirl)

66.The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis (Recommended by Sarah Orr)

67. Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan, recommended byWeyni Mengesha

• 20 Canadian novels to read if you want to be a writer

68.And the Birds Rained Down by Jocelyne Saucier, translated by Rhonda Mullins (Recommended byJane Margot)

69. The Darkhouse by Barbara Radecki (Recommended by @Philippeayoub)

70.Baseball Life Advice by Stacey May Fowles (Recommended by @singing2three)

71.The Collected Poems of PatrickLane, recommended by SherylMcKay

• Patrick Lane on his writing routine and embracing change

72. Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald (Recommended byKim Neudorf, Jane Margot, @JulieGlaser3,Linda Hulme Leahy,Lorna Driscoll, Corina McNeill&@kathydinbc)

73. A Fair Country by John Ralston Saul (Recommended by Mary Walsh)

74. Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper (Recommended byWendy Barker)

75.When The World Was New byGeorge Blondin, recommended byLawrence Nayally

• N.W.T. elder, storyteller GeorgeBlondin dies at age 87

76. Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson (Recommended byLori Steele Maddigan)

77. Canoe Country byRoy MacGregor (Recommended by Katie Jim)

78. Alligator Pie by Dennis Lee, illustrated by Frank Newfeld (Recommended bySandra Ferguson)

79. The Break by Katherena Vermette, recommended by Ali Hassan

Also recommended by:Lori Steele Maddigan,Margaret Dianne Harris, @leavethedayfree&Wendy Barker

• Ali Hassan shares five reads that changed his life

80.The Just City by Jo Walton (Recommended by Wendy Barker)

81.Not Wanted on the Voyage by Timothy Findley (Recommended byEileen Carey,Sandra Dowhan,Shelley Kean, Jane Margot, @JesiquaR)

82.Lightfinder by Aaron Paquette (Recommended by Stephanie Michaels)

83.Two Solitudes by Hugh MacLennan, recommended byTerry Seguin

Also recommended by:Diane Lacasse

• 30 works of Canadian fiction to read before you're 30

84.Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town by Stephen Leacock (Recommended by Donna Skinn)

85.Kamouraska byAnne Hbert (Recommended by Emma Richler)

86. The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill (Winner Canada Reads 2009, defended by Ali Velshi)

87.A Disappearance in Damascus by Deborah Campbell, recommended byRobyn Bresnahan

• Deborah Campbell on the small histories that tell the big stories

88.We All Fall Down by Eric Walters (Recommended byDeb Marshall)

89.And Home Was Kariakoo by M.G. Vassanji (Recommended by @peggyflynn25)

90. The Last Crossing by Guy Vanderhaeghe (Winner Canada Reads 2004, defended by Jim Cuddy, recommended by @peggyflynn25&Barbara Bovaird)

91.The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, recommended byMarjorie Dowhos

Also recommended by: @super_crazy_kd,Laurel Hodgins,Melinda Crump,Colin Wild& NadineDajani

• The 3 things that inspired Margaret Atwood to write The Handmaid's Tale

92. Lullabies for Little Criminalsby Heather O'Neill (Winner Canada Reads 2007, defended by John K. Samson, recommended by Joyce Jackman)

93. Slash byJeannette Armstrong (Recommended byLori Steele Maddigan)

94.We're All In This Together by Amy Jones (Recommended byBeth Damery)

95.Home Sweet Home byMordecai Richler, recommended by Dave Bidini

• Dave Bidini's life in books

96. A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews (Winner Canada Reads 2006, defended by John K. Samson)

97.I Want to Go Homeby Gordon Korman(Recommended byLisa Willner)

98. The Perfection of the MorningbySharon Butala(Recommended bySuzanne Marlow & Pat Bell)

99.Naked with Summer in Your Mouth by Al Purdy, recommended by Greg Bryk

• Sook-Yin Lee wonders, where have all the poets gone?

100. Nikolski by Nicolas Dickner, translated by Lazer Lederhendler (Winner Canada Reads 2010, defended byMichel Vzina, recommended byPamela Murray)

101.TheShoe Boyby Duncan McCue(Recommended by@Pschyolod)

102. Next Year, For Sure byZoey Leigh Peterson(Recommended by @EmilySaso1)

103.Testifyin' by Djanet Sears, recommended by Amanda Parris

• Amanda Parris: 8 books that changed my life

104. The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis (Winner Canada Reads 2011, defended by Ali Velshi, recommended by Kelly Hyland)

105.Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje (Recommended by @DiSpeirs)

106.Everything Beautiful is Not Ruined byDanielle Younge-Ullman(Recommended by Kristilyn)

107.No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod, recommended by Jonna Brewer

Also recommended by:Bev Harding, @soondone,Judy Staffer, Danielle Chandler,Petra Young,Shelley Kean&Kent Miller)

108.The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood (Recommended by Una Rose & @yolandabdacy)

109. Jake and the Kid by W.O. Mitchell (Recommended by Mark Kingwell)

110. The Orenda by Joseph Boyden (Winner Canada Reads 2014, defended by Wab Kinew)

111.All My Puny Sorrows byMiriam Toews, recommended by Christa Couture

Also recommended by: @CarlaCarmact, @ColleenCrawley, @kathydinbc& Linda Evans

• 5 books that changed Miriam Toews' life

112.The Stone Carvers by Jane Urquhart(Recommended byMarian Kuiper, Fiona St. Jean, @peggyflynn25,PetraYoung& @ShelleyCooke10)

113.Such a Long Journey by Rohinton Mistry (Recommended by @yolandabdacy)

114. Secret Path by Gord Downie & Jeff Lemire (Recommended by Emily Stewart)

115.Indian Fall by D'arcy Jenish, recommended by Craig Norris

116. The Birth Houseby Ami McKay (Recommended by @MsEllanDawn)

117.Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water (Recommended by David Alexander Robertson)

118.We'll All Be Burnt in Our Beds Some Night by Joel Thomas Hynes (Recommended by @MeandMyKat)

119. February by Lisa Moore, recommended by Tom Power

WinnerCanada Reads 2013. Defended by Trent McClellan.

Also recommended by: Jane Margot

• Lisa Moore on why everyone can (and should) write a book

120.The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields (Recommended by @MaryWWalters&Meeya Awbay)

121. milk and honey by Rupi Kaur (Recommended by Emily Stewart)

122.Fifteen DogsbyAndrAlexis (Winner Canada Reads 2017, defended by Humble The Poet)

123.Shake Hands with the Devil by Romo Dallaire, recommended by Stephen Lewis

124.Annabel by Kathleen Winter (Recommended by Nancy Hall)

125.Jacob Two-Two Meetsthe Hooded Fang by Mordecai Richler (Recommended by Kyra Collins)

126. Skim by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki (Recommended by Emily Stewart)

127.The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami, recommended by Vinay Virmani

Also recommended by: Corina McNeil

• 5 books to read if you loved The Hero's Walk

128. The Fire-Dwellers by Margaret Laurence (Recommended by Jen Sookfong Lee)

129. Something Fierce by Carmen Aguirre (Winner Canada Reads 2012, defended by Shad)

130. We Sang You Home by Richard Van Camp, illustrated by Julie Flett(Recommended by Emily Stewart)

131.The Darkest Darkby Chris Hadfield(Recommended by Anne Crosby)

132.Where I Belong byAlan Doyle, recommended by Trent McClellan

• Alan Doyle's journey from small town Newfoundland to Great Big Sea

133.The Cure for Death by Lightning by Gail Anderson-Dargatz (Recommended byLaurel Hodgins,Teresa Reid&Kathie Ramsey Hunter)

134. King Leary by Paul Quarrington (Winner Canada Reads 2008, defended by Dave Bidini)

135. Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine (Recommended bySandra Ferguson)

136. The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko(Recommended byChantalAntonakis&EmmBee)

137. The Colony of Unrequited Dreams by Wayne Johnston, recommended by Lisa Laco

• Why did Newfoundland join Canada? This new play puts the saga centre stage

138. Rockbound by Frank Parker Day (Winner Canada Reads 2005, defended by Donna Morrissey)

139. Island by Alistair MacLeod(Recommended by Lesley Choyce)

140.Sing a Song of Mother Goose by Barbara Reid (Recommended bySandra Ferguson)

141.Fatty Legsby Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, illustrated by Liz Amini-Holmes (Recommended by Katie Jim)

142.Generation X by Douglas Coupland, recommended by Adam Copeland

• The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels

143.The Wonder by Emma Donoghue(Recommended by @yolandabdacy)

144.Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell(Recommended byPaulineVallee)

145. Next Episode by Hubert Aquin,translated by Sheila Fischman, (Winner Canada Reads 2003,defended by Denise Bombardier)

146.Life of Pi byYann Martel, recommended by Jason D'Souza

Also recommended by:Martha Beechie

• Yann Martel on why Life of Pi didn't make him a better writer

147. Stepping Stones by Margriet Ruurs, illustrated by Nizar Ali Badr(Recommended by Carolyn)

148. I Am Not a Number by Jenny Kay Dupuis & Kathy Kacer, illustrated by Gillian Newland (Recommended by @BrandonZoras)

149. Kiss of the Fur QueenbyTomson Highway(Recommended by@jmkershaw&Tal Taylor)

150.Klondike by Pierre Berton(Recommended by@lavee76&Vala Monestime Belter)