BC Books Online was created for anyone interested in BC-published books, and with librarians especially in mind. We'd like to make it easy for library staff to learn about books from BC publishers - both new releases and backlist titles - so you can inform your patrons and keep your collections up to date.
Our site features print books and ebooks - both new releases and backlist titles - all of which are available to order through regular trade channels. Browse our subject categories to find books of interest or create and export lists by category to cross-reference with your library's current collection.
A quick tip: When reviewing the "Browse by Category" listings, please note that these are based on standardized BISAC Subject Codes supplied by the books' publishers. You will find additional selections, grouped by theme or region, in our "BC Reading Lists."
In the late fifties, Ann Kujundzic, her husband and artist Zeljko, and three children--with a fourth on the way--packed up their lives in post-war Edinburgh and emigrated to the Kootenays in BC, seeking adventure and opportunity. In Nelson, Ann was involved in establishing the Kootenay School of Art in 1960, a remarkable institution whose history has yet to be documented in the way it merits--until now. New Ground: A Memoir of Art and Activism in BC's Interior is the extraordinary memoir of a feminist, artist and activist who fought for change no matter her circumstance. The Kootenay School of Art was the first of its kind in the region, but it only marked the beginning of what would become Kujundzic's life-long journey to strengthen the artistic and political environment of BC. She and Zeljko established the Kelowna Art Centre, collaborated with George and Norma Ryga, joined the Voice of Women, lived and worked on a co-op farm, fought for women's reproductive rights and social justice, and joined the Raging Grannies to fight against the military's recruitment of the youth, all while juggling the roles inherent of motherhood. She travelled the world--often alone, with nothing but a phrase book to aid her--to places like Nunavut, Yugoslavia, Bethlehem and Hong Kong to keep her politics globally sound. Honest, intelligent and brave, New Ground shares the life of a remarkable woman whose efforts in the political and artistic communities of BC are still being felt today.
Ann Kujundzic (1929 – 2021) was born in Dysart, Scotland. At age nineteen she married artist Zeljko Kujundzic and emigrated to Canada where they raised five children. Her involvement in establishing the Kootenay School of Art in Nelson, collaborations with the Ryga family in Summerland and her activism gave her a unique view of British Columbia’s cultural and political history. She lived in Victoria, BC.
"We can't read enough about 'extraordinary ordinary' women like Ann Kujundzic, a wife and mother of five who transcended the narrow gender constrictions of her time to forge an independent personal and public life, rich with female friendships and social and political activism.''
--Bonnie Sherr Klein, activist and former Studio D filmmaker