Canadian Literature & Poetry
in English
Book & Publishing History
Digital Collections
Early Canadiana Online
A digital collection of works in English and French published from
the time of the first European settlers up to the early twentieth century. The collection
includes colonial, provincial and federal government publications, Jesuit relations texts, and an
English Canadian literature collection with over 800 works of drama, poetry and fiction,
biography and exploration written before 1900.
Canadiana Online: Serials Collection
Early dailies, weeklies, specialized journals and mass-market magazines up to 1930. The collection includes publications for
diverse ethnolinguistic communities, city directories, and annual reports from churches, schools, businesses and other organizations.
Early English Books Online
Full-text digitized works printed in British North America (and
other regions, including England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales), 1473–1700. Book about Canada
mainly consist of exploration narratives and missionary accounts.
Eighteenth-Century Collections Online
Full-text digitized works printed in Great Britain in the
eighteenth century, encompassing an early historical stage of Canadian writing.
Multicultural Canada
Newspapers, books, manuscripts, documents, photographs, audio files
and other materials published and created by Canada’s
immigrants.
Toronto Public Library Digital Archive
Includes a range of digitized primary source materials, including
historical maps, books, and assorted ephemera (postcards, advertisements, flyers, and tickets).
General History
History of the Book in Canada
Starting in 1997, a team of historians, librarians, and literary
scholars from across the country took up the task of writing a comprehensive book on a history of
the book and print culture in Canada. In three volumes. Volume One: “Beginnings to 1840”, Volume Two: “1840–1918,” Volume Three: “1918–1980.”
Z 206 .H58 2004
Stacks
The History of the Book in Canada: A Bibliography
Subject categories include printed books and printing,
illustration, type founders and designers, book trade and publishing, libraries and librarianship,
periodicals, newspapers and journalism.
Z 206 .B37 1993
Reference
The Perilous Trade: Book Publishing in Canada, 1946–2006
Chronicles the history of English-language publishing from World
War II to the early twentieth century.
Z 481 .M35 2007
Stacks
Ultra Libris: Policy, Technology, and the Creative Economy of Book
Publishing in Canada
Reflecting cultural, political, and technological changes, this
detailed exploration of Canadian book publishing displays trends of the industry from the last
fifty years. Also discusses government policy and technology in the context of the the Royal
Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters and Sciences (1951) and the Ontario Royal
Commission on Book Publishing (1972).
Z 481 .L673 2012
Stacks
“Literary Taste in Central Canada During the Late Nineteenth
Century”
An article published in the Canadian Historical Review
(volume 31, no. 3, September 1950), exploring the importance and the effect of nineteenth-century
journals in Canada, including the Literary Garland (1838–1851) and The Week: A
Canadian Journal of Politics, Society, and Literature (1883–1896).
Literary History of Canada: Canadian Literature in English
A comprehensive reference work on the English literary history of
Canada in four volumes, which includes essays on the history of Canadian literary publishing by
bibliographer and librarian H.P. Gundy.
PR 9184.3 .L5 1976
Reference
Book Publishing and Publishers in Canada Before 1900
Recounts the emergence of the publishing and bookselling industries
and the development of the Canadian copyright law.
Z 483 .G8
Stacks
Paper Phoenix: A History of Book Publishing in English Canada
Z 481 .B7
Stacks Oversize
“The Canadian Author’s Association in the 1920s: A Case Study
in Cultural Nationalism”
Analyzes the founding, early history, membership, and the aims of
the Canadian Authors’ Association (CAA). Vipond also evaluates the effectiveness of the
organization in promoting Canadian literature nationwide and copyright protection for Canadian
writers. CAA members advocated that propagating national literature was an effective tool in
stemming the influence American mass-media on Canadian cultural life. F.R. Scott, Leon Edel,
A.J.M. Smith and other poets and writers associated with small literary magazines (such as the
Canadian Mercury) were critical of this approach.
Upper Canadian Imprints, 1801–1841: A Bibliography
Z 1365 .F54 1988
Reference
The Canadian Private Presses in Print: A List of Books &
Broadsides, Posters & Pamphlets, Ephemera Etc.
Z 1028 .C36 1984
Reference
First-Nations Publishing
Looking at the Words of Our People: First Nations Analysis of Literature
The first collection in Canada of literary analysis on Native Literature written by First-Nations scholars. The book includes
a critical essay by Greg Young-Ing about the marginalization of First Nations’ publishing industry.
PR 9188.2 .I5 L66 1993
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Royal Commissions on Book Publishing
Report, 1949–1951
AZ 515 .A53
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Canadian Publishers & Canadian Publishing: Final Report of
Ontario Royal Commission on Book Publishing, 1972
Background Papers
Z 481 .O62
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Anthologies
Anthologizing Canadian Literature: Theoretical and Cultural
Perspectives
Essays focus on anthologies as national metaphors, the
controversies surrounding early literary collections, representations of First Nations peoples in
anthologies, and the ways in which various editors have understood exploration narratives. In
addition, the collection examines the representation of women in Canadian anthologies, the use of
anthologies as teaching tools, and the creation of some very odd Canadian anthologies along the
way.
PR 9184.6 .A58 2015
Stacks
Book Editing
Editing as Cultural Practice in Canada
Examines the role that editors in the production of literary and scholarly texts in Canada.
Toronto Trailblazers: Women in Canadian Publishing
The first-ever study of women in Canadian publishing, the book delves into the cultural influence of seven key women who, despite
pervasive gender bias, helped advance a modern literary culture for Canada. Publisher Irene Clarke, scholarly editors Eleanor Harman and Francess Halpenny, trade
editors Sybil Hutchinson, Claire Pratt, and Anna Porter, and literary agent Bella Pomer made the most of their vocational prospects.
Book Trade & Design
The Surface of Meaning: Books and Book Design in Canada
Examines how Canadian book design (from the mid-eighteenth century
to the early twentieth-first century) was influenced by a national identity, culture, and history.
Z 483 .B74 2008
Stacks Oversize
The Beginnings of the Book Trade in Canada
Chronicles the history of the various aspects newspaper and book
publishing, from 1751 to 1900, including authorship and subscription publishing. Also examines the
development of the Canadian copyright law in relation to international copyright.
Z 483 .P37 1985
Stacks
“Bestselling Authors, Magazines, and the International Market”
Canadian Binders’ Tickets and Booksellers’ Labels
Explores the use of binders’ tickets and booksellers’
labels within the Canadian bookselling business, which demonstrate geographic trends and
advertising methods in the commerce of books.
Z 483 .G37 2015
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Academic Publishing
Journal of Scholarly Publishing, “Special Section on the Future of University Press in Canada”
An issue devoted to the current scholarly publishing landscape in Canada, including articles on open access and its impact on
academic libraries, the development and changes of the Wilfred Laurier and Concordia University Presses, copyright, academic publishing in Indigenous studies,
and other topics.
On the Edge, at the Centre: A Life in History
Hallowell recounts his career as a distinguished acqusitions
editor, the history of the University of Toronto Press, and analyzes the role of book editors in
scholarly publishing.
“‘A Press with Such Traditions’: Oxford University
Press of Canada”
Examines the changes in the publishing program of the Oxford
University Press (which established a Canadian branch in Toronto on August 10, 1904) in the
context of Canadian history and literature. Panofsky also analyzes the activities of the OUP’s managers, S.B. Gundy, W.H. Clarke, C.C. Johnson, William Toy, Lorne Wilkinson, and Richard Teleky.
Key Porter Books
In Other Words: How I Fell in Love with Canada One Book at a Time
A memoir by Anna Porter, owner of Key Porter Books.
Z 483 .P67 A3 2018
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McClelland & Stewart
New Canadian Library: The Ross-McClelland Years, 1952–1978
Analyzes the historical context of the New Canadian Library series,
edited by Malcolm Ross and published by McClelland &
Stewart, beginning in 1958. Also examines the simultaneous development of Canadian literary
studies as a legitimate area of research and teaching in academe and acknowledges the NCL as a
milestone in Canadian publishing history.
The Handover: How Bigwigs and Bureaucrats Transferred Canada’s
Best Publisher and the Best Part of Our Literary Heritage to a Foreign Multinational
Investigates how Canada’s premiere national publisher,
McClelland and Stewart, was eventually sold to Random House, a division of Bertelsmann, a German
media giant.
Z 483 .M33 D48 2017
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Jack, A Life with Writers: the Story of Jack McClelland
Z 483 .M3 K56 1999
Stacks
Imagining Canadian Literature: The Selected Letters of Jack
McClelland
Sorted chronologically, the letters between the preeminent
publisher and leading Canadian authors of the fifties, sixties and seventies offer an inside view
of the personalities that contributed to Canada’s position in the international publishing
market. Featuring Margaret Atwood, Pierre Berton, Earle Birney, Leonard Cohen, Margaret Laurence,
Irving Layton, Farley Mowat, Peter C. Newman, Mordecai Richler, Gabrielle Roy, Michael Ondaatje,
and Al Purdy.
Z 483 .M3 A4 1998
Stacks
Margaret Laurence and Jack McClelland, Letters
In this collection of annotated letters, readers gain rare insight into the private side of these literary icons. Their
correspondence reveals a professional relationship that evolved into deep friendship over a period of enormous cultural change. Both were committed to the idea of
Canadian writing.
“‘I am Being Taught My Own Work’: Editor Claire Pratt
of McClelland and Stewart”
Analyzes the career of Claire Pratt (1921–1995), who served as the senior editor at McClelland and Stewart between 1956 and
1965 within the context of book history and history of publishing in Canada. Developing and expanding the New Canadian Library (NCL) series was one of Pratt’ major editorial achievements. NCL continues to be recognized as a “prestige imprint on paperback editions of Canadian works.” Pratt also worked closely with Malcolm Ross, Peter
C. Newman, Margaret Laurence, Irving Layton and other promient authors. The article is an important contribution to the study of women in the publishing sector.
Macmillan Company of Canada
The Literary Legacy of the Macmillan Company of Canada: Making Books
and Mapping Culture
Examines the contribution of publishers and editors (including Hugh
Eayrs, John Gray, and Hugh Kane) to the formation of the Canadian literary canon, beginning with
the establishment of Macmillan Canada in 1905.
“‘Head of the Publishing Side of the Business’: Ellen
Elliott of the Macmillan Company of Canada”
Ellen Elliott was secretary and director of Macmillan from 1937 to
1947 and one of the first professional women to hold a senior position in the Canadian publishing
industry. An accomplished book editor, Elliott’s career brought her in contact with E.J.
Pratt, Frederick Philip Grove, W.O. Mitchell, P.K. Page, and many other prominent authors and
poets associated with Macmillan.
A Bibliography of Macmillan of Canada Imprints, 1906–1980
Z483 .M32 W48 1985
Reference
Ryerson Press
The House of Ryerson, 1829–1954
Z 232 .R9 P5 1954
Canadiana
On Publishers & Publishing
Pierce discusses the role of book publishing houses and editors in
Canadian society during the early fifties.
Z 278 .P611o
Old Class Pamphlets
Editor’s Creed
Z 483 .P5
Canadiana
Both Hands: A Life of Lorne Pierce of Ryerson Press
Presents the life and work of Lorne Bruce Pierce (1890–1961),
the influential, long-serving editor of the Ryerson Press, who
was also known as a publisher, biographer, and literary critic.
Z 483 .P53 C34 2013
Stacks
The Ryerson Imprint: A Check-List of the Books and Pamphlets
Published by the Ryerson Press Since the Foundation of the House in 1829
Z 1367 .R9 W3
Reference
Small, Private & Literary Presses
Experiment: Printing the Canadian Imagination. Highlights from the David McKnight Canadian Little Magazine and Small Press Collection
An exhibition catalogue featuring over one hundred highlights of a large and extraordinary collection of Canadian little magazines
and Canadian small press and micro-press imprints assembled by David McKnight, a librarian and collector who donated the collection to the University of Alberta
Libraries in 2012. It now forms part of the Bruce Peel Special Collections.
Z 1369 .U55 2018
Stacks
Books without Bosses: Forty Years of Reading Between the Lines
Z 483 .B48 C53 2017
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Children’s Books
Picturing Canada: A History of Canadian Children’s Illustrated
Books and Publishing
Examines illustrated children’s books from geographical,
historical, and cultural perspectives on the Canadian national identity, published between the
1890s to 2005. Also studies the institutions and the professionals involved in the Canadian book
writing, publishing, and reading, including authors, publishers, illustrators, editors,
librarians, booksellers, and critics.
Z 483 .E46 2010
Stacks
Journals & Journal Publishing
Experiment: Printing the Canadian Imagination. Highlights from the David McKnight Canadian Little Magazine and Small Press Collection
An exhibition catalogue featuring over one hundred highlights of a large and extraordinary collection of Canadian little magazines
and Canadian small press and micro-press imprints assembled by David McKnight, a librarian and collector who donated the collection to the University of Alberta
Libraries in 2012. It now forms part of the Bruce Peel Special Collections.
Z 1369 .U55 2018
Stacks
The Little Magazine in Canada, 1925–80: Its Role in the Development of Modernism and Post-Modernism in Canadian Poetry
PR 9190.5 .N67 1984
Stacks
Books in Canada
Publishes in-depth and evaluative reviews of contemporary Canadian
literature.
Canadian Author and Bookman
Includes articles on author and poets, as well as book reviews and
essays related to book publishing, bibliography, and librarianship. Desmond Pacey criticized the
journal for promoting uninhibited literary nationalism. The publication merged with Canadian
Author to form Canadian Author and Bookman, April, 1940.
Canadian Children’s Book News
A magazine featuring reviews for recommended books, author and
illustrator interviews and profiles of publishers and bookstores.
Canadian Forum
Features short stories, poetry, and critical essays published by
many preeminent Canadian authors and poets. Also published articles on Canadian cultural
development.
Literary Garland
The journal was an important publishing platform for pioneer
writing in the “new world,” featuring stories of travel to an unknown land and the
challenges of frontier life. Writing as “Mrs. Moodie,” Susanna Moodie (1803–
1885) was among the most distinguished contributors. An
index to the periodical, compiled by Mary Markham Brown, is available in-print.
Quill & Quire
A magazine that publishes reviews of new book releases in fiction,
nonfiction, and poetry, and articles about the Canadian publishing market, the book trade, and
libraries.
Journal of Scholarly Publishing, “Special Section on the Future of University Press in Canada”
An academic, peer-reviewed periodical analyzing old and new challenges in scholarly publishing resulting from changes in technology
and funding. Articles include advice on getting published in academic journals and books and address such topics as editorial and publishing policy, computer
applications, electronic publishing, effective marketing and business management.
Publishing in Canada
A trade magazine published by Livres Canada Books, a non-profit organization. Its mandate is to support Canadian-owned and
controlled book publishers’ export sales activities in order to help publishers improve their overall export results. Includes articles on new titles from
Canadian publishers, publishers’ associations and their activities, literary and professional events in Canada, and other information.
Forum: Canadian Life and Letters, 1920–70: Selections from the
Canadian Forum
PR 9194.9 .F67
Stacks
“Canadian Nationalism and the Plight of Canadian Magazines in the
1920s”
Studies the impact of the American periodical industry on Canadian magazine publishing. In the 1920s, due to the advances in
printing technology, business practices, improvements in living standards, and increases in the attainment of formal education, Canadians devoted more time to
reading Ladies’ Home Journal, Saturday Evening Post, and other periodicals imported from the United States. Vipond analyzes the efforts of
the Magazine Publishers’ Association of Canada (MPAC) and other groups in curtailing the competition between Canadian and American periodical publishers
for Canadian readership. The article was published in The Canadian Historical Review, volume 58, number 1 (March 1977).
The Little Magazine in Canada, 1925–80: Its Role in the
Development of Modernism and Post-Modernism in Canadian Poetry
Analyzes the emergence of small-press publications in Canada (such
as Alphabet, Tish, and Delta) which had their beginnings in the
American modernist movement. Also includes a bibliography of Canadian little magazines and other
titles related to the subject.
PR 9190.5 .N67 1984
Stacks
Editing Modernity: Women and Little-Magazine Cultures in Canada, 1916–1956
A critical assessment that shows the major roles played by women in
disseminating modernisms through a series of little and not-so-little magazines. Dorothy Livesay
was highly influential in the left-wing Masses; Eleanor Godfrey edited The Canadian
Forum; Livesay and Floris McLaren helped to found Contemporary Verse and P.K. Page,
Kit Shaw, and Peggy Anderson were primarily responsible for publishing Preview.
Roughing It in the Suburbs: Reading Chatelaine Magazine in
the Fifties and Sixties
PN 4914 .W6 K67 2000
Stacks
Canada since 1960: A Left Perspective on 50 Years of Politics, Economics and Culture
Canadian Dimension is a left-leaning magazine first published in Winnipeg in 1963 that includes analysis of Canadian
economic, social, cultural, artistic and political issues. Hundreds of Canada’s leading figures of the left have contributed to its pages over the years,
writing about every major topic in Canadian public life. This book offers an account of the most important developments in Canadian history
from the sixties until today, as seen and interpreted by scholars and writers on the pages of Dimension. Each chapter reviews a major theme, such as
Canada’s relationship to the United States, the development of our health care system, the dynamics of Aboriginal-non-Aboriginal relations and the role of
Canadian cultural work in shaping Canadian society.
F 1034.2 .C298 2016
Stacks
The “Alternative” Press in Canada: A Checklist of
Underground, Revolutionary, Radical and Other Alternative Serials from 1960
A directory of obscure underground periodicals published in Canada
up to 1960. The 413 titles are organized by geographic region and subject.
Z 6954 .C2 W66
Reference
Newspapers
The Globe and Mail
Toronto Star
A History of Journalism in Canada
Analyzes the history of newspaper publishing and journalistic
production between 1752 (the publication of the Halifax Gazzette, the first newspaper in
Canada) and the mid-1960s. Details individual histories of the major Canadian English and French
newspapers: The Globe and Mail, Le Devoir, Le Presse, and the
Vancouver Province.
From Politics to Profit: The Commercialization of Canadian Daily
Newspapers, 1890–1920
Examines the role of Canada’s first mass communication medium
in shaping Canadian politics and national consciousness and how their publishing model developed
into a profit-driven industry.
Major Scholarly Journals
Book History
Publishes articles on the creation, dissemination, and reception of
script and print, including the history of the book in Canada. The official publication of the
Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. Peer-reviewed.
Mémoires du livre / Studies in Book Culture
The focus of the journal is to advance scholarship on the Canadian
book history: agents and institutions involved in the production, dissemination, and circulation
of texts, materiality, content, practices, and usage of books.
Amphora
Articles on a wide range of topics related to the book arts: collecting, typography, type design, typesetting, calligraphy, paper
making, ornamentation, illustration, printing and binding. Not peer-reviewed.
created by: Agatha Barc | updated: 21 January 2020