It's the winter of 1884, and five hundred Canadian Pacific Rail workers have halted their push through the Rockies at Holt City, an isolated shantytown in the shadow of the Continental Divide. The men are tired and cold, and patience is as scarce as the rationed food. Then, Deek Penner, a CPR section boss, is brutally murdered at the end of the tra …

In 1864, headstrong Pinkerton man Zachary Beddoes is tired of guarding hotels and railway stations, so he decides to quit his life of private law-enforcement and head west for gold. In San Francisco, Zachary hears that the best goldfields are north, in British Columbia. Undeterred by warnings of how harsh and unforgiving the Barkerville goldfields …

Edmonton’s Loud & Queer Cabaret has been blazing trails and shining a light on Queer arts and culture for twenty years. The showcase has debuted more than three hundred pieces of stunning performance and art from both established and emerging talent alike.

From the Loud & Queer Cabaret archives, here are some of the most memorable pieces, from m …

August 12, 2003, marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Sir James Douglas. Although he played an integral role in British Columbia's history, in many ways Douglas remains misunderstood and an enigma. He is known for his contradictory qualities—he was self-serving, racist, a military hawk, sometimes violent and arrogant. Yet he was also extre …

In her best-selling first book, Home: Tales of a Heritage Farm (2005), Anny Scoones introduced readers to historic Glamorgan Farm. In Home and Away, Anny presents more stories about the joys and sorrows, excitements and mishaps and also takes readers farther afield, sharing with them her travels to other parts of Canada, to New York and to such pla …

The first real look at the Canadian West

Harmon's Journal—the first published English-language journal written in B.C.-is a lively, engaging story that, unlike other early journals, captures the rough-and-tumble life of a fur trader and explorer in the western Canada of 200 years ago. Harmon's descriptions of the cultures and customs of the peopl …

The latest addition to TouchWood Editions’ Classics West Collection, Klondike Cattle Drive is the colourful tale of a formidable trek undertaken by legendary Cariboo rancher Norman Lee.

In 1898, Lee set out to drive 200 head of cattle from his home in the Chilcotin area of B.C. to the Klondike goldfields—a distance of 1,500 miles. He was gambli …

Adventures on wild waters

In Finlay's River, R. M. Patterson, whose style was described by noted author Bruce Hutchison as a a mixture between Thoreau and Jack London, tells the story of his 1949 trip up this wild river in remote northern British Columbia. Patterson uses his own journey as a framework to recount the adventures of explorers who went …

In the early sixteenth century, the first exploratory ships arrived on the Pacific Coast of North America. These rovers were seeking gold and silver, fur pelts, a safe passage from the Pacific to the Atlantic, and above all, adventure. Though many of the voyagers didn’t survive the dangerous sea crossings or the perils that awaited them on land, …

The stories in Far Pastures take readers to R.M. Patterson’s homestead in the Peace River country of northern Alberta. To all-night dances that ended as the northern lights faded in the dawn. To escapades on the Fort Nelson, Liard and South Nahanni rivers. And to a ranch in southern Alberta where he raised cattle during the lean years of the 1930 …

Britsh Columbia Bizarre is a fascinating and eclectic mix of tales, snippets, historical facts, fancies and misconceptions teased from the history of British Columbia. No one should read this book to obtain a balanced view of the province's history. It ignores the important people and trends that contributed to BC's story, and instead favours the o …

It’s no secret that Canadians love beer, and in the western provinces, the large number of successful microbreweries continues to prove that distinct beer—high-quality beer—is important to our national pint-lovers. Beer Quest West is for homebrewers and beer aficionados alike: this is your guide to the best of the west.

Alberta and British Co …

A line of nervous young women got off a ship in Victoria Harbour in 1862 and had to walk the gauntlet between two rows of jostling, eager men. One girl, proposed to on the spot, accepted equally quickly and left town with her new husband. Why did these women leave everything behind in England and come to the west coast? The answers lie in the lusty …

David Finch’s highly regarded biography of R.M. Patterson is now available in paperback. The escapades of this great Canadian are brought to life in a story that combines the lure of gold, the thrill of wilderness exploration and comic tales about life on a southern Alberta ranch. With access to Patterson’s diaries, letters and photographs, as …

Powerful and diligent, Peter O’Reilly played a role in shaping British Columbia in the last quarter of the 1800s. An immigrant from Ireland, O’Reilly landed in Victoria during the height of the Cariboo Gold Rush and was appointed gold commissioner for BC. He held the position of county court judge, and sorted settler and Native disputes, despit …

Around One More Point is a journal sketchbook of writings, photographs and drawings that capture the adventures of B.C. artist and paddler Mary Gazetas, who has journeyed with family and friends on the west coast of Vancouver Island, the Inside Passage and Haida Gwaii for almost 25 years.

This work, with its powerful visual imagery, includes stories …

In the early days, Plains Indians travelled on foot across the vast Canadian prairies, with only fierce, wolf-like dogs as companions. Later, with the arrival of Europeans, horses and canoes appeared on the scene. In Rediscovering the Prairies, Norman Henderson, a leading scholar of the world’s great temperate grasslands, revives the earlier mode …

Brought into the media spotlight by her great-niece Pamela Anderson, Auntie Vie burst onto the scene as Pamela’s biggest supporter on “Dancing with the Stars.” Unexpectedly, Auntie Vie’s distinctive balance of earned wisdom and chic glamour quickly charmed the media and viewers of all ages. Her door suddenly stormed by cameras and reporters …

For well over a century, the bright seas of the Sunshine Coast have been attracting visitors to the waterfront resorts, fishing lodges and beaches that rest between Howe Sound and the spectacular Princess Louisa Inlet. These coastal hotspots and communities were settled by a few courageous and daring pioneers whose names are still familiar today: …

Frances Barkley was just eighteen when she became the first European woman to set foot on the west coast of North America. After a sheltered upbringing in England, Frances found herself boarding the Imperial Eagle in 1786 to set sail on an adventurous, round-the-world voyage with her husband, Captain Charles William Barkley.

With great wisdom and wi …

Keeping the peace in turn-of-the-century B.C.

Murderers, thieves and drunks tested the will of Superintendent Fred Hussey, the B.C. Provincial Police officer appointed to keep the peace in rough-and-tumble, turn-of-the-century B.C. But in his action-packed and often risky career, he always relied on the power of reason rather than force to set thing …

Bill Gallaher’s bestselling novel The Journey follows a group of three adventurous Overlanders—two young men and one remarkable woman—as they travel west in 1862, from the Manitoba prairies to the goldfields of the Cariboo.

With his gift for storytelling, Gallaher brings this intriguing era to the page as he vividly recounts the overland trek …

The famous Victoria ghost who appeared to a tour group listening to her story, the little boy playing with a red ball in Nanaimo, the phantom “helper” in a restaurant kitchen – these are among the true stories in Robert Belyk’s new Ghosts. Encounters with entities from a different reality do occur in the rational, modern world; the experien …

Written with R. M. Patterson’s characteristic sharp wit and observation, this classic tale chronicles the year he spent battling frigid temperatures and wild waters along the Nahanni River in Canada’s Northwest Territories. Patterson originally travelled to the North with hopes of finding gold, and clues to the mysterious disappearance of earli …

At the end of the Second World War nearly 50,000 women emigrated to Canada from Britain and the continent, scarred from the bomb-rutted fields of Europe. For them that Atlantic crossing marked the beginning of a great adventure: a new country, a new life and a new husband. For many children of these unions came a dual heritage, a cultural divide th …

The doorbell rings—it's show time! Stop blubbering into your apron, down that glass of red, and drag yourself to the door to greet your guests with a smile. You, the Rebel Cook, the one with two left spoons, will lead the evening's expedition. By midnight, with any luck, your guests will be so beguiled by the dècor, the music, and the clever con …

Few men have been as set on isolated adventures and as passionate about the wild landscape of Canada as R.M. Patterson. He spent over 30 years in exploration, from northern rivers such as the Nahanni and the Liard, to the foothills of the Rockies, and he recorded his discoveries in vivid words and breathtaking photographs along the way. His memorab …

It’s summer vacation and a camping trip seems in order, but your group’s not interested in eating packaged rice and tofu-dogs for a week. Another Fork in the Trail is the vegetarian and vegan sequel to the backcountry cookbook A Fork in the Trail and your solution to eating like the king of the forest.

Laurie Ann March offers more than 120 rec …

Children and teenagers stroll between the skyscrapers in Vancouver, and experience the city in a different way that adults do. They have helped Vancouver transform from humble trading post to towering metropolis, yet how often are they asked to tell their side of the story? Vancouver Kids is a collection of tales about the unforgettable young peopl …

Asiatic Poppies, which include the fabled Himalayan (or Tibetan) Blue Poppy, are among the most desirable, yet most elusive, of garden plants. Growing in the remote alpine meadows of the world's greatest mountain ranges, some 60 different species can be found.

As this stunning calendar demonstrates, the poppies bloom in a full range of showy, prima …

Winner of a 2012 Independent Publisher Book Award Gold Medal

Winnipeg, 1914. Tom Macrae is working on his law degree and enjoying the company of his sweetheart, Ellen. When the call to arms comes, both Tom and Ellen are torn from their secure, settled lives in the prairie city. Tom finds himself hunched in the trenches, amid the mud and horror of th …

Celebrate the unique flavours, terroir and grape varieties that can be found only on the wine islands off the west coast. A collaborative effort from the writers of EAT Magazine, Island Wineries of British Columbia is your guide to a growing wine culture and the food movement that accompanies it. Starting with the history behind the region’s win …

Adrift on the Ark is a collection of personal essays by Margaret Thompson that offers a straightforward study of the complex relationship between human beings and the natural world. The essays look at a wide range of beings—from spiders to peacocks—and cover issues such as our irrational phobias, our fascination with zoos, and the myths and sto …

In May 1936, George Dalziel flew far up the Nahanni River to check on Bill Eppler and Joe Mulholland, who were working one of his traplines. He found their cabin burned to the ground and no sign of them anywhere. What had happened to the healthy young men? Had there been an accident, or was a killer on the loose?

Dalziel, known as The Flying Trappe …

Winner of a 2012 Independent Publisher Book Award Gold Medal

It’s the last ski weekend of the season and a mishmash of snow-enthusiasts is on its way to a remote backwoods cabin. In an odd pilgrimage through the mountains, the townsfolk of Coalton—from the ski bum to the urbanite—embark on a bizarre adventure that walks the line between comedy …

Nuts make the most mundane foods extraordinary. The added crunch or buttery smoothness of a certain nut can change the dish completely. They are versatile, tasty, a great source of protein, available and affordable.

This exciting culinary collection has something for everyone, from the seasoned cook to the budding new chef. The recipes are of easy- …

Charming, humorous and utterly engaging, this is a book that will make readers laugh and cry. Written from the point of view and in the voice of the author’s dog, Lonesome, its observations of life in the wilds reveal a dog with great character, charm and attitude.

Named for her first home, remote Lonesome Lake in British Columbia’s Tweedsmuir …

Widely recognized as a classic of northern-exploration literature, A Journey to the Northern Ocean is Samuel Hearne's story of his three-year trek to seek a trade route across the Barrens in the Northwest Territories. Hearne was a superb reporter, from his anguished description of the massacre of helpless Eskimos by his Indian companions to his met …

"Duncan and Szanto bring their A-game to this daring and complex novel."—Lou Allin, Crime Writers of Canada

Sandro Vasiliadis, a nurse at the Whidbey Island General Hospital, has died of an apparent heroin overdose. When his grieving mother bends over to kiss her son’s corpse at the viewing, she shrieks, “That’s not Sandro!” Convinced tha …

Walter B. Cheadle’s diary tells his incredible story of travelling with Lord Milton, as they journeyed along the uncharted Yellowhead route in 1862–63. A miraculously successful expedition, the men traversed the continent, making their way from Quebec, through Saskatchewan, Alberta, up the Athabasca River, risking their lives opening the trails …

With sharp, witty reviews of the best spots in town to slake your thirst, Drinking Vancouver: 100+ Great Bars in the City and Beyond is the pocket-sized booze bible for locals and visitors craving a night out on the town. Divided into 11 neighbourhoods, each one with a handy map, visit many of the new, revamped and unique establishments from the he …

Thousands of newcomers are pouring into Alberta from around the globe, bringing unexpected gifts. Many are writers and storytellers.

What pulls them to Canada? What happens to them on the journey? What experiences have they deliberately left behind? What treasures do they bring? How do they describe their emerging sense of place and their creative a …

Standing Together is a powerful expression of women's collective and individual strength. It is a collection of personal stories from women who have suffered the horrors of violence and abuse and have made the hardest decision: to stand up, choose life, take control and walk away from the darkness.

The disturbing, compelling, and inspiring stories i …

In this lyrical memoir, Lily Hoy Price writes with moving detail about her childhood and adolescence in a large Chinese Canadian family in the Cariboo country of northern British Columbia. The ninth daughter in a family of 12 children, Lily is an observant child who tucks away every image of life in rugged Quesnel during the 1930s for one unforgett …