Canadian Literature & Poetry
in English
Women’s Writing
Anthologies
Early Voices: Portraits of Canada by Women Writers, 1639–1914
A collection of first-person accounts of women’s experiences
of Canada, representing a multitude of Canadian regions, national origins, and social classes.
Includes writings by Anna Brownell Jameson, Catharine Parr Traill, Emily Carr as well as lesser
known names.
HQ1453 .E33 2010
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The Penguin Book of Contemporary Canadian Women’s Short Stories
Includes stories published between the 1980s and the early
twenty-first century from Alice Munro, Margaret Atwood, Carol Shields, Mavis Gallant, Jane
Urquhart, Jacqueline Baker, Bonnie Burnard, Lynn Coady, Camilla Gibb, Eden Robinson, and Madeleine
Thien.
PR 9197.33 .W65 P45 2006
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The Oxford Book of Canadian Verse
Include early Canadian poets, such as C.D. Shanly and R.A.
Faulkner; prominent Confederation poets (Bliss Carman, among others), and
women poets (Tekahionwake, also known as E.Pauline Johnson). The anthology provides insight into
how early Canada looked and felt to newcomers, evolving attitudes about Canadian identity, and
the early canonization of the nation’s literature.
PR 9195.25 .O9 2013
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Sexing the Maple: A Canadian Sourcebook
A sourcebook that raises issues of nationalism and sexuality in
Canada through a rich and diverse selection of fiction, poetry, criticism, and history. The
collection considers topics as wide-ranging as First Nations sexuality, censorship, assisted
reproduction, and religion. Literary works by Alice Munro, Jane Rule, Timothy Findley, Leonard
Cohen, Irving Layton, Lynn Crosbie, Michael Turner, and many others are included.
HQ 18 .C2 S395 2006
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Bibliographies
Database of Canada’s Early Women Writers
Women authors who either lived for an extensive period of time in
Canada or self-identified as Canadian, and who published some form of writing in English—in any
genre and in any forum—up to and including 1950. An entry for each writer includes the dates and
places of the author’birth and death, a bibliography of published works, and places of
residence.
The Feminine Gaze: A Canadian Compendium of Non-Fiction Women Authors
and Their Books, 1836–1945
A bibliography detailing writings by Canadians as well as British
and American travellers on their impressions of Canada and many different cultural aspects of the
country in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The compendium features brief biographies of the
authors, short descriptions of their books, and a comprehensive index of their books’
subject matters.
Canada’s Early Women Writers: Texts in English to 1859
This bibliographical study presents 152 women-authored
English-language texts relating to Canada that were published from 1728 to 1859, including the
works of Frances Brooke, Anna Jameson, Susanna Moodie, and Catherine Parr Traill. Included are
monographas that appeared before 1860, and
personal life-writings (letters, diaries, travael journals) written before 1860 that were
published later.
Z 1376 .W65 G47 1994
Reference
Bibliography of Feminist Criticism
An older book (published in 1987), but it includes bibliographical
lists of retrospective feminist criticism not published elsewhere. Also contains citation
information of books, articles, theses, and dissertations about feminist literary theory,
individual writers, images of women in men’s writing, images of men, and feminist presses.
Z 1377 .F38 G63 1987
Reference
Contemporary Canadian and U.S. Women of Letters: An Annotated
Bibliography
Provides a bibliography for sixteen contemporary writers from
Canada and the United States. Although works of poetry and fiction are listed, the annotations are
restricted to the critical and theoretical works of the writers. Canadian writers profiled in the
volume include: Louky Bersianik, Nicole Brossard, Aritha Van Herk, Janice Kulyk Keefer, Jay
Macpherson, Daphne Marlatt and Jane Rule.
Z 1376 .W65 G46 1993
Reference
Biographies
Dictionary of Canadian Biography
The Biography provides authoritative biographical
information about significant figures of Canada’s past who died between the years 1000 and
1930, or whose last known date of activity falls within these years.There are detailed articles on
Canada’s major historical figures, and short articles on minor personages who have hitherto
found no place in reference works or general histories.
Profiles in Canadian Literature 1980–
An on-going series since 1980, these volumes contain studies of a
broad range of authors from a variety of regions and periods. Each author is presented in four
sections: a brief essay about the writer’s work; a chronology of the works; comments by the
writer, and comments by other critics. A bibliography of primary works and criticisms suggests
further study.
PR 9184.6 .P76
Reference & Stacks Oversize
ECW’s Biographical Guide to Canadian Novelists
Includes such notables as Susanna Moodie, James De Mille, Stephen
Leacock, Margaret Laurence, Alice Munro and Audrey Thomas. Brief biographies include titles of
works published and awards earned. Arrangement by date of birth, the coverage begins in 1724, and
ends with Matt Cohen (born in 1942).
PR 9186.2 .E28 1993
Reference
Canadian Writers 1920–1959, First Series
Alphabetically arranged essays have description of life and work,
career chronology and a bio-critical narrative for each author. Reproduces samples of text,
manuscript, title pages and dust jackets. Often includes photographs of authors and handwriting
samples.
PR 9186.2 .C34 1988
Reference
Canadian Writers 1920–1959, Second Series
This volume covers the English language and French language writers
of Canada who established their careers between 1920 and 1959. Illustrations include photographs
of manuscripts and book jackets, as well as portraits of the writers. References are provided for
further reading, and locations of archival papers are noted.
PR 9186.2 .C342 1989
Reference
Canadian Writers Since 1960, First Series
Biographies of major writers placed in the perspective of literary
history; includes some minor figures. Has drawings, paintings, and photographs of authors; title
pages and dust jackets of their works reproduced in facsimile. Alphabetical arrangement of works
and books, multi media productions and periodical publications. An extensive biography about the
author follows, with an analysis of style and used. Interviews are listed and a select
bibliography concludes the entry.
PR 9186.2 .C365 1986
Reference
Canadian Writers Since 1960, Second Series
This work extends the First Series by providing additional
biographies, critical overviews and bibliographies to English language and French language
Canadian writers whose careers were established during the decades of the 1970s and 1980s.
PR 9186.2 .C366 1987
Reference
Canadian Novelists, 1920–1945
Biographical and bibliographical information concerning authors
either Canadian born or established residents who have published fiction since 1920. Note that
there is nothing after 1945; use in conjunction with other bibliographies. Appendix at the end
classifies authors according to the genre into which their works fit. Published in 1946.
Z 1377 .F4T5
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World Writers in English
An idiosyncratic selection of writers from Commonwealth countries.
Canada is represented by Margaret Atwood, Alice Munro and Michael Ondaatje. Biographical
information, bibliography of primary and secondary sources and descriptions of individual works.
PR 9080.5 .W67 2004
Reference
Individual Authors
The Cambridge Introduction to Margaret Atwood
Summarizes Atwood’s output, from her earliest poetry and her
first novel (The Edible Woman, 1969) through The Handmaid’s Tale (1985) to
The Year of the Flood (2009). Covering the full range of her work, it guides students
through multiple readings of her works. It includes chapters on her life and career, her
literary, Canadian and feminist contexts, and how her work has been received and debated over the
course of her career.
PR 6051 .T9 Z7885 2010
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The Cambridge Companion to Margaret Atwood
Twelve essays exploring the depiction of female bodies,
environmentalism, humour, home and nationhood in the Atwood’s novels, such as The
Handmaid’s Tale, Oryx and Crake, and others. Other topics include her poetry
and short stories.
Margaret Atwood: A Reference Guide, 1988–2005
A bibliography of Margaret Atwood’s works from 1988 to 2005 and writings about them by others, including books, articles,
short stories, letters, and poetry, as well as adaptations and quotations, organized chronologically by year. Secondary entries such as interviews, scholarly
resources, and reviews are organized by type and then alphabetically.
Z 8046.947 .H46 2007
Reference
The L.M. Montgomery Reader
Volume One: “A Life in Print” assembles significant rediscovered primary material on one of Canada’s most
enduringly popular authors throughout her high-profile career and after her death. Volume Two: “A critical heritage” narrates the development of L.M.
Montgomery’s critical reputation in the seventy years since her death. Volume III: “A Legacy in Review” examines a long-overlooked portion of
Montgomery’s critical reception: reviews of her books.
PR 9199.3 .M6 Z786 2013
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The Fragrance of Sweet-Grass: L.M. Montgomery’s Heroines and the Pursuit of Romance
Focusing on Montgomery’s memorable heroines, Epperly demonstrates that Montgomery deserves a place in the literary canon not
just as the creator of Anne of Green Gables but as an artist in her chosen profession.
Alice Munro
Includes critical essays on Munro’s books, a chronology of her life, and a bibliography of her publications.
PR 9199.3 .M8 Z5145 2009
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Alice Munro: An Annotated Bibliography of Works and Criticism
Z 8605.55 .M39 2007
Reference
Sharon Pollock: First Woman of Canadian Theatre
As playwright, actor, director, teacher, mentor, theatre administrator, and critic, Sharon Pollock has played an integral role in
the shaping of Canada’s national theatre tradition. This collection is comprised of new and original assessments of her work and contribution to theatre.
Adele Wiseman: An Annotated Bibliography
Lists book reviews, interviews, and scholarly articles on Wiseman
Z 8979.18 .P35 1992
Reference
History, Literary Interpretation & Criticism
The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Literature
A comprehensive, authoritative guide to many different genres, topics, and aspects of Canadian literary history, including the
influence of literature on the Canadian national identity, authorship, postcolonialism, short story, drama, poetry, Indigenous literatures, women’s writing,
children’s literature, gay and lesbian literature, creative work from the Confederation period, regional fiction, and minority writers.
PR 9180.2 .O95 2016
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The Cambridge History of Canadian Literature
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. Analyzes the emergence of multicultural and Indigenous writing, popular
literature, nature-writing, life-writing, and the interaction of anglophone and francophone
cultures throughout Canadian history.
Canadian Literature
Critical study of Canadian literature, placing internationally successful anglophone Canadian authors in the context of their
national literary history. While the focus of the book is on twentieth-century and contemporary writing, it also charts the historical development of Canadian
literature and discusses important eighteenth- and nineteenth-century authors. The chapters focus on four central topics in Canadian culture: ethnicity, race,
colonization; wildernesses, cities, regions; desire; and histories and stories. Authors chosen for close analysis include Margaret Atwood, Michael Ondaatje, Alice
Munro, Leonard Cohen, Thomas King and Carol Shields.
PR 9189.6 .H36 2007
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The Cambridge Companion to Canadian Literature
A comprehensive introduction to major writers, genres and topics in Canadian literature: fiction, drama, and poetry, Aboriginal
writing, autobiography, literary criticism, writing by women, urban writing, nature-writing, exploration and travel-writing, and short fiction.
Bibliography of Feminist Criticism
Includes books, articles, sections of books, theses, dissertations, interviews and reviews on feminist literary theory, general
studies of feminist writers, individual writers, images of women in men’s writing, images of men, journalism, and feminist presses.
Z 1377 .F38G63 1987
Reference
Canadian Literature at the Crossroads of Language and Culture: Selected Essays by Barbara Godard, 1987–2005
Godard is recognized as one of the most influential scholars in the area of Canadian studies. This anthology of her collected
essays includes “The Politics of Representation: Some Native Canadian Women Writers,” first published in 1990.
PR 9193.5 .G63 2008
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Canadian Women Writing Fiction
A collection of critical essays about contemporary Canadian women writers including, Alice Munro, Mavis Gallant, Anne Hébert,
Margaret Atwood, Marie Claire Blais, Carol Shields and Joy Kogawa.
PR 9188 .C36 1993
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Writing in the Feminine in French and English Canada: A Question of Ethics
Considers the contemporary movement of “writing in the feminine&rdquo by examining the work of five women writers from French
and English Canada and the dialogue therein with feminist and psychoanalytic theory and theories of ethics.
Gynocritics: Feminist Approaches to Canadian and Quebec Women’s Writing
The essays in this volume explore women as readers and writers and the collection concludes with the first extensive bibliography
of feminist criticism about Canadian and Québec literature.
PR 9188 .G95 1987
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Canadian Literature at the Crossroads of Language and Culture: Selected Essays by Barbara Godard, 1987–2005
Godard is recognized as one of the most influential scholars in the area of Canadian studies. This anthology of her collected
essays includes “The Politics of Representation: Some Native Canadian Women Writers,” first published in 1990.
PR 9193.5 .G63 2008
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Wider Boundaries of Daring: The Modernist Impulse in Canadian Women’s Poetry
Presents a revision of the genealogy of Canadian literary modernism by foregrounding the originary and exemplary contribution of
women poets, critics, cultural activists, and experimental prose writers Dorothy Livesay, P.K. Page, Miriam Waddington, Phyllis Webb, Elizabeth Brewster, Jay
Macpherson, Anne Wilkinson, Anne Marriott, and Elizabeth Smart.
PR 9188 .W54 2009
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Literary Culture and Female Authorship in Canada 1760–2000
Six women writers from six different periods and how they portray Canadian women authors: Frances Brooke; Susanna Moodie; Sara
Jeannette Duncan; L.M. Montgomery; Margaret Atwood and Carol Shields.
PR 9188 .H35 2003
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Contemporary Canadian Women’s Fiction: Refiguring Identities
Charts the changes in the Canadian literary landscape since the early 1990s in the work of Margaret Atwood, Alice Munro, Carol
Shields, Ann-Marie MacDonald, Kerri Sakamoto, Shani Mootoo, Gail Anderson-Dargazt, and Eden Robinson.
PR 9188 .H67 2003
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Sounding Differences: Conversations with Seventeen Women Writers from Across Canada
Each interview contains a short bio-critical essay, a photograph of the writer, and a sample of their writing. A mixture of
essayists, novelists, and poets. Some of the interviews were previously published in literary journals.
PR 9188 .S68 1993
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All My Sisters: Essays on the Work of Canadian Women Writers
Clara Thomas has been an important contributor to Canadian literary feminism. This volume of essays deals to a large part with
Margaret Laurence but also includes major nineteenth-century and twentieth-century women writers.
PR 9188 .T48 1994
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Canadian Women in Print, 1750–1918
Historical examination of women’s engagement with multiple aspects of print over some two hundred years in Canada, from the
settlers who wrote diaries and letters to the New Women who argued for ballots and equal rights.
PR 9188 .G47 2010
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Jane Eyre’s American Daughters: From the Wide, Wide World to Anne of Green Gables: A Study of Marginalized Maidens and What
They Mean
PS 374 .W6 S44 2005
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The Island Motif in the Fiction of L.M. Montgomery, Margaret Laurence, Margaret Atwood, and Other Canadian Women Novelists
Examines islands and idylls as recurring images inthe work of Canadian women novelists.
PR 9192.6 .I75 S54 2003
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Narrative Strategies in Canadian Literature: Feminism and Postcolonialism
The essays focus on the interrelation of realism, modernism and postmodernism as a set of tensions within the literary traditions
of the English language.
PR 9192.5 .N37 1991
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Tropes and Territories: Short Fiction, Postcolonial Readings, Canadian Writing in Context
Analyzes the influence of postcolonial criticism on the reading, writing, and status of short fiction: Métis narratives, Maori
myth, and stories by Alice Munro, Salman Rushdie, Alistair MacLeod, Mavis Gallant, Emily Carr, and Thomas King.
PR 9084 .T76 2007
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Odysseys Home: Mapping African-Canadian Literature
Presents a history of the African-Canadian literature and oral cultures, identifies African-Canadian literature’s
distinguishing characteristics, argues for its relevance to both African Diasporic Black and Canadian Studies, and critiques several of its key creators and
texts. Authors whose work is examine in the book are André Alexis, Dionne Brand, Austin Clarke, Claire Harris, and M. Nourbese Philip.
PR 9188.2 .B57 C56 2002
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Directions Home: Approaches to African-Canadian Literature
Building on the discoveries of his critically acclaimed Odysseys Home, Clarke showcases the importance of little-known
texts, including church histories and slave narratives, and offers studies of autobiography, crime and punishment, jazz poetics, and musical composition.
Settling Down and Settling Up: The Second Generation in Black Canadian and Black British Women’s Writing
Comparing second generation children of immigrants in black Canadian and black British women’s writing, the book extends
discourses of diaspora and postcolonialism by expanding recent theory on movement and border crossing. Considering migration and settlement as complex,
interrelated processes that inform each other across multiple generations and geographies, Medovarski challenges the gendered constructions of nationhood and
diaspora with a particular focus on Canadian and British black women writers, including Dionne Brand, Esi Edugyan, and Zadie Smith.
Beyond the Canebrakes: Caribbean Women Writers in Canada
Essays and interviews that examine the work of West Indian women writers living in Canada. The essays examine the work of literary
artists Claire Harris, Olive Senior, Lillian Allen, Afua Cooper, Dionne Brand, M. Nourbese Philip, Nalo Hopkinson, Pamela Mordecai, and Makeda Silvera as an
integral not marginal element of the Canadian and world literature canons.
PR 9188.2 .C37 B49 2008
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Taking Back Our Spirits: Indigenous Literature, Public Policy and Healing
Examines contemporary autobiography, fiction, and drama to reveal how these texts respond to and critique public policy, and how
literature functions as medicine to help cure the suffering inflicted by the colonial legacy.
PR 9194.5 .I5 E65 2009
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At Odds in the World: Essays on Jewish Canadian Women Writers
Examines the contributions of performers and other artists to the Yiddish theatre and culture in Montreal in the first half of the
twentieth century, with consideration to the social landscape of the city.
PR 9188.2 .J48 P25 2008
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Alice Munro’s Miraculous Art: Critical Essays
The book is then divided into three sections, focusing on Munro's characteristic forms, themes, and most notable literary effects.
PR 9199.3 .M8 Z516 2017
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Digital Collections
Canadian Poetry Online
A collection of poetry from numerous nineteenth and twentieth-century Canadian poets, including Isabella Valancy Crawford, Marjorie
Pickthall, Margaret Avison, Gwendolyn MacEwen, Janis Rapoport, and numerous others.
Canadian Poetry
Created in partnership with the Electronic Text Centre at the University of New Brunswick Libraries, this collection contains the
full text of more than 19,000 poems by 177 poets including Bliss Carman, Isabella Valancy Crawford, Archibald Lampman, Charles G.D. Roberts and Duncan Campbell
Scott, offering a comprehensive survey of Canadian poetry from the eighteenth century to the early twentieth.
North American Women’s Drama
102 full-text plays by Canadian writers: Carol Bolt, Sharon Pollock, Rachel Wyatt, and others.
North American Women’s Letters and Diaries
27 diaries and other types of writing from Susanna Moodie, Letitia MacTavish Hargrave, Catherine Parr Traill, and others.
Journals
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) is recognized as the most
distinguished contributor.
Margaret Atwood Studies
Published by the Margaret Atwood Society, the journal publishes articles of scholarly criticism of Atwood’s novels, short
stories, and poetry. Also features an annual Atwood bibliography. Peer-reviewed.
updated & expanded by: Agatha Barc, 21 January 2020
originally compiled by: Irene Dutton, Alison Girling