Top Ten Top Ten Book Lists of 2019
Image by Jo Ramsay
You read this right. We’re breaking down the top ten top ten book lists that rank Canadian literature’s best of 2019.
Before you dig too deep, you should know not every list on here is, strictly speaking, a top ten list. Some go for 15, 20, or even an ambitious 30. But who doesn’t love a good listicle, and even more, a listicle about listicles.
Working our way from okay to better, here’s number ten.
10. Indigo
Indigo’s Best Books of 2019
Canada’s biggest bookstore gives us a very specific number of 52 books which seem to have been selected by a curious algorithm aiming to combine kick-ass Canadian writers with international commercial performers. The format could be better, but it’s rad to see Cherie Dimaline’s Empire of Wild as number one on the list.
Indigo’s goal is to sell these books, so it’s understandable that’s their priority over giving us a little more insight for the choices behind this list. Sally Rooney’s Normal People is number five though, and people need to stop peddling this seriously overhyped book.
9. Writers’ Trust of Canada
2019 Best Books of the Year
A whopping 27 writers and jurors involved with the Writers’ Trust have emailed in their favourite reads from 2019. Some elaborate deeply about why they are connected to their recommendations, others simply supply a bullet-point list. There are a lot of repeats, but can you blame them if the book is really just that good?
The books listed aren’t explicitly Canadian, but definitely draw attention to lesser-known works like chapbooks and niche poetry collections. To see Sally Rooney’s Normal People appear again, this time in the same breath as Alicia Elliot’s A Mind Spread Out on the Ground, is surprising.
8. Maclean’s
Best Books of 2019
To be honest, this is one of only two lists that decided to keep to the top-ten format. Of its comparably small book recommendations, the first five listed were all published by a division of Penguin Random House Canada, leaving only three books on the list to be from small publishers.
Don’t get us wrong, we love the ol’ PRH, but it would have been nice to see more indie inclusions like Marc Hamer’s How to Catch a Mole from Greystone Books and Paul Morland’s The Human Tide. These quirky nonfiction inclusions are a breath of fresh air as it’s already starting to feel culturally mandated to include Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments.
7. Now Toronto
The Best Books of 2019
Seven of the fourteen books (yes, we’re counting the four honourable mentions) are Canadian. Fifty percent is not too bad! And sometimes it’s nice to see international talent side-by-side with local talent.
This list has an appetite for historical fiction, transporting you to 1960s East Germany with Deborah Levy’s The Man Who Saw Everything, the horrors of a 1960s’ Florida reform school with Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys, and the jungles of 1950s’ Ecuador with Joan Thomas’ Five Wives.
So if you’ve been itching for a spot of socially conscious time travelling, NOW has got you covered.
6. 49th Shelf
12 Days of Bookness
This adorable community fixture of book reviews and book lists help people just like yourself find their next great Canadian read in every genre. For the month of December, the 49th Shelf gave out 12 bundles of books in the spirit of Christmas.
Many of Canada’s prominent publishing houses donate books every year to create some eclectic book bundles from the year’s award contenders. Of course you’ve got fiction favourites from the Governor General's Award and the Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, but there are also books from the Indigenous Voices Awards and the Sunburst Awards for YA Fantasy Writing (just to name a few) up for grabs.
We like their style and the holiday giving spirit. Congrats to all the lucky ducks who won out this season. Not jealous at all over here.
5. Toronto Star
The Best List: Toronto Star’s Top Ten Books of 2019
Voilà, this is the second of two strictly top ten lists. Chosen by the Star’s cohort of book reviewers, this list follows the simple format of a one-paragraph synopsis, followed by a quote from a reviewer—we can appreciate a good layout.
Some books are given a little more time and detail than others, but ultimately the list does its best to spread its love around the Can lit community. It includes the usual award contenders that appear on most of the year’s lists, but still makes room for a few off-beat treats.
4. CBC
The Best Canadian Nonfiction of 2019
We like that the CBC gave Canadian nonfiction its own due. There’s a lot of fierce energy behind these 22 books as some seriously powerful Canadians write about their struggles through homelessness and escaping abuse. Robyn Doolitte’s She Had It Coming investigates how police mishandle sexual assault cases, and Anna Mehler’s Hello I want to Die Please Fix Me meet depression and mental illness head-on in an exploratory and self-meditative fashion. If you’re keen for the heavy stuff, look no further than this list.
3. The Walrus
Ten Canadian Authors on the Best Books of 2019
This list sets itself apart from the rest as ten authors gush about other authors. It feels like a double whammy of book recommendations from people whose books you should also definitely read like Casey Plett’s Little Fish and Sharon Bala’s debut novel, The Boat People.
The books selected highlight stories about struggles with identity and trauma from gender or racialized violence. Although this article presents itself as a top ten list, some authors can’t help but mention multiple books. We get it guys, it’s really hard to name just one book that you love.
2. Quill & Quire
2019 Books of the Year: Editors’ picks
The Quill & Quire’s inclusions nail down an impressively wide array of books that are both mainstream and also darlingly niche. Of course it has buzzing books like Ian Williams’ Reproduction, but it also illuminates fun and funky pieces like Mona Awad’s Bunny and Sonnet L’Abbé’s Sonnet’s Shakespeare.
With spotlights shining on Greystone Books’ Whatever Gets You Through and Arsenal Pulp Press’ beautifully illustrated graphic novel adaptation of The Blue Road: A Fable of Immigration, this list gives every square on the Can lit quilt its dues.
1. Shrapnel
Top Ten Top Ten Book Lists of 2019
The best awards are the ones you give yourself. We’ve brought the whole crew together under one roof. You’re welcome and here’s to a killer 2020 for Canadian books. * Clink *
Jo Ramsay
is a Canadian-born, London-based editor and travel copywriter. She’s worked in publishing for four years and continues to pursue opportunities in Canada and abroad. She’s worked at two publishing houses (Arsenal Pulp Press and Greystone Books) and was the blog and opinions editor at The Ubyssey newspaper. She’s lived in Canada, the UK, and Japan.