No matter what kind of love you’re honouring this week, let it include a love of books. With the company of a good book, you’ll never be lonely. Transport yourself to far-flung corners of the globe, imagine yourself in the fairy tale world of princesses, and witness two girls save a beautiful old cedar from being cut down—all from the comfort of your own loveseat. Love shows itself in many ways, but spending time with a good book is one of the best ways of showing love to yourself.
Here are a few books we’re feeling all heart-eyes about this week.
Released just in time for the day of love and heartbreak, The Brightest Thing (Caitlin Press) is the first full-length collection by award-winning poet Ruth Daniell. A work that is both tragic and uplifting, The Brightest Thing is a lyrical story of a young woman who is assaulted by her first boyfriend, a traumatic experience that results in her struggle to rethink the notion of romantic love. Populated by the silenced princesses of fairy tales, Daniell’s poetry shifts between hurt and beauty, and what it means to find light in the dark.
Part reincarnation story, part reimagining of a hard-boiled detective novel, The Second Detective by Shannon Mullally (Anvil Press) is a book best enjoyed with a stiff drink. Winner of the 40th annual 3-Day Novel Writing Contest, the novel is a surreal jaunt told by a mysterious narrator, with a missing husband, a plan for reincarnation, and the unstoppable forces of the universe.
If Valentine’s day makes you feel like skipping town and heading on an adventure, look no further than Lines on a Map: Unparalleled Adventures in Modern Exploration (Rocky Mountain Books). A collection of travel essays by renowned filmmaker and environmentalist Frank Wolf, Lines on a Map is the perfect accompaniment to a sense of wanderlust, complete with colour photographs. Join a cycling and volcano-climbing adventure in Java, or trek across the country via canoe—plane tickets not included.
Curl up with one of those variety boxes of chocolates and dig into The Broken Face by Russell Thornton (Harbour Publishing). Meditating on themes of intimacy, family, loss, and what it means to live life at the periphery, this collection of poetry is both life-affirming and poignant observations of mortality. With a deep emotional resonance, Thornton proves his mastery of the craft with snapshots of a considered life.
While you’re
Best paired with little cinnamon candy hearts, Attack of the Lonely Hearts by Mark Wagstaff (Anvil Press) is a novel about 30-something Margaret Rudge. After adjusting to life post-husband, Margaret gets a job at a New York coffee cart. Here she meets modern dancer Frank, and learns what it means to wrestle with a lonely heart in a city of broken people.
If you think you have enough drama in your life, think again. Chile Con Carne and Other Early Works (Talonbooks) is the good kind of drama; a collection of three plays from the influential Canadian Latina playwright Carmen Aguirre written during the 1990s. Set against the violent backdrop of the now-ousted Pinochet dictatorship, Chile Con Carne deals with the experience of exile and the terror of oppressive regimes.
Through beautiful illustrations by Julie Flett, The Girl and the Wolf by Katherena Vermette (Theytus Books) tells the story of a little girl who finds herself lost in the woods. As she begins to panic, a large grey wolf comes out from the trees and, using his sense of smell, decides he can help her. By asking her a series of questions, the wolf encourages the girl to realize that she had the skills to make her own way back home. Subverting the fairy tale genre, The Girl and the Wolf is an encouraging reminder to young readers that they already have all the tools they need to create their own destiny.