From coast to coast to coast, Canada is shaped by the stories, cultures, and people that make this place feel like home. Beyond the fireworks and red and white, it’s about shared moments, diverse voices, and the memories we continue to create together.
With that spirit in mind, we’ve put together a Tellwell booklist featuring stories that reflect journeys, perspectives, and voices from across the country, each one offering a glimpse into the richness of life in Canada.
Canada 1867–2017 by Paul Taillefer
A lifelong collection of Canadian history comes together in a passion project decades in the making.
Positively Canadian by Heather Ann Pattullo
Discover Canadian culture through fun stories and engaging insights.
Want to improve your English as you “share a conversation” with the author?
Then this book is for you!
The informal writing style makes it utterly readable and delightfully entertaining. You could read it just for the fun of knowing more about Canada and skip the English exercises.
Or, you could just do the exercises to give you a little help in improving your English grammar. Either way, you can’t help but learn more about Canada as every sentence in the exercises tells you a bit more.
The author’s light-hearted comments and personal experiences regarding many of the “facts” on each province and territory add a delightful informality to the writing.
Whether you are an adult wanting a ‘refresher’ on Canada, an ESL student wanting grammar practice while learning zany Canadian facts or a new citizen of Canada, there is something here for everyone.
Canadian Encounters of a Human Kind by David Watts
Stories that reveal the ever-changing Canadian identity.
We can however describe what it is based on the relationships of flesh and blood people who have lived and met here. Of more than two dozen people in these sketches, less than half were born or died in Canada or would be considered long term residents.
Some lived before there was a “Canada:” when the word referred to a postage-stamp province or string of villages along a great river. All these figures became leaders in communities. Not all were well known in their time here or afterwards. Here are some of their stories.
That Little Blue Car by Ronda Potts
An unexpected journey from stillness to adventure sparked by a single message.
Then…a text message appears on your phone. You’re invited on a road trip. You know you can’t go, but you text back anyway, enthusiastically accepting the offer.
How did that happen?
Then…at a California gas station, a little toy car with a for sale sign and an adorable Alabama drawl captures your heart. Giddy with your newfound freedom, the two of you barrel down a Death Valley highway, scouting for roadrunners and coyotes.
How did that happen?
That Little Blue Car calls, so hop in! Join an epic Canadian/American roadtrip.
Embracing Canada by Jan Soukup
An immigrant’s journey shaped by Canada’s wild beauty and spirit of freedom.
Throughout his modern frontier science work in Canada, there has always been the awareness of his wilderness backyard in the back of the author’s mind, which drew him to Canada in the first place. He devoted most of his spare time to his hobbies: wilderness hiking, canoeing, skiing, cycling, dog sledding and riding, especially after his children grew up and left home
