photo of stacks (lower floor)

Canadian Literature & Poetry
in English

Ethnic & Religious Minority Writers

Encyclopedias, Handbooks & Bibliographies

The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Literature Sugars, Cynthia, editor A comprehensive, authoritative guide to many different genres, topics, and aspects of Canadian literary history, including diasporic literatures and Asian-Canadian literatures.
The Cambridge History of Canadian Literature Howells, Coral Ann and Eva-Marie Kröller, editors A complete English-language history of Canadian writing in English and French from its beginnings, with an emphasis on literary, poetic, and dramatic works published since the 1960s. It analyzes social and cultural changes in Canada during the postwar period (and their influence on literature) and the emergence of multicultural writing.
Canadian Literature Hammill, Faye A critical study of Canadian literature, which examines the role of ethnicity, race, colonization and other factors in the development of Canadian writing.
Five-Part Invention: A History of Literary History in Canada Blodgett, E.D. Composed of five parts: immigrant communities, English Canada, French Canada, First-Nations communities, and Inuit communities.
Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English Benson, Eugene, and L.W. Conolly, editors Describes writing affected by the process of colonization, including Canadian literature: individual writers, national literary developments, and major genres that provide a cross-cultural view.
Ethnic and Native Canadian Literature: A Bibliography Miska, John An older book (published in 1990), but it remains an excellent resource for locating poetry, fiction, and drama authored by foreign-born authors residing in Canada.

Asian-Canadian Literature & Poetry

Swallowing Clouds: An Anthology of Chinese-Canadian Poetry Quan, Andy, and Jim Wong-Chu, editors Poems by a number of well-known writers as well as fresh new poetic voices, forming an eloquent and fiery portrait of the Chinese-Canadian experience: Fred Wah, Rita Wong, Jim Wong-Chu, Kam Sein Yee, Paul Yee and others.
Toward the North: Stories by Chinese-Canadian Writers Wu, Hua Laura, et al., editors The first anthology of thirteen short fiction pieces written and translated by Chinese-Canadian writers during the last two decades, each of which depicts the contemporary lives of new Chinese immigrants to Canada, and illustrates newcomers’ perspectives of multicultural Canada.
In Flux: Transnational Shifts in Asian Canadian Writing Miki, Roy Investigates the shifting currents of citizenship, globalization, and cultural practices facing Asian Canadians today through the connections of place and identity that have been forged through our developing national literature.
Asianfail: Narratives of Disenchantment and the Model Minority Ty, Eleanor An exploration of literature, plays, and film that reveals how young Asian Americans and Asian Canadians have struggled with the ethos of self-sacrifice preached by their parents.

reviewed & updated 20 May 2021 | compiled by Agatha Barc, MI