Joseph William McKay
Finalist, 2021 Lieutenant Governor’s Medal for Historical Writing
An intriguing look at the accomplishments and contradictions of Joseph William McKay, best known as the founder of Nanaimo, BC, and one of the most successful Métis men to rise through the ranks of the Hudson’s Bay Company in the late nineteenth century.
When examining the history …
Flourishing and Free
An inspiring and eye-opening collection of true stories about sixteen women who blazed their own trails in life and contributed in a fundamental way to the history of Vancouver Island and the surrounding islands.
In this fascinating follow-up to On Their Own Terms, author Haley Healey chronicles the lives of a whole new crop of resilient, hard-worki …
Railway Nation
A riveting, visually engaging collection of vignettes highlighting the rich heritage of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Since its founding in 1881, Canadian Pacific has made an indelible mark on the lives of Canadians. Most commonly associated with its iconic railway, at its height CP also ran hotels, steamships, and an airline, and had myriad involve …
Legacy of Trees
An engaging, informative, and visually stunning tour of the numerous native, introduced, and ornamental tree species found in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, combining a wealth of botanical knowledge with a fascinating social history of the city’s most celebrated landmark.
Measuring 405 hectares (1,001 acres) in the heart of downtown Vancouver, Stanle …
Stagecoach North
An in-depth look at the origins and operations of a pioneering transportation company that moved people and goods across the province throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
At the height of the Cariboo Gold Rush, demand for an efficient transportation route to and from the goldfields was reaching a point of desperation. With a …
On Their Own Terms
"An engaging contribution to Canadian women's history." —BC Books for BC Schools
A fascinating collection of concise stories about seventeen courageous, independent, and diverse women who shaped the history of Vancouver Island.
From the lush rainforest of Clayoquot Sound to the bustling city streets of Victoria, Vancouver Island has been home to an …
The Final Voyage of the Valencia
A dynamic retelling of the deadly 1906 sinking of the SS Valencia off the southwest coast of Vancouver Island, one of the worst maritime disasters in Canadian history.
There are few places on earth that have such a high record of marine casualties as the short yet treacherous stretch of coastline known as the Graveyard of the Pacific. In the late ni …
Robert Service
"Andra-Warner has given us a great read with this slim biography. Her story-telling skills excel at distilling historical facts into compelling narrative."—Thunder Bay Chronicle-Review
A quick-paced and engaging biography of Canada's favourite northern poet, Robert Service.
Born in England in 1874 to Scottish parents, Robert William Service was rai …
Ranch Tales
An entertaining, fast-paced look at early ranching in British Columbia.
Frontier historian Ken Mather is known for his fascinating, in-depth profiles of the men and women who established a distinctive ranching culture in Western Canada over a hundred years ago. Now, in this concise collection of stories—based on Mather’s column in the Vernon Mor …
Searching for Pitt Lake Gold
A smart, concise analysis of the legend of Slumach’s Gold, which strives to uncover the truth behind this mythical gold deposit said to be hidden north of Pitt Lake.
British Columbia is gold country, and with gold comes legends that have been passed down through the generations. Ever since the Fraser Canyon gold rush, prospectors and adventurers h …
Ranching under the Arch
A visually rich, historically epic tale of cattle ranching in southern Alberta, focusing on multi-generational family-owned ranches that are still in existence today.
In the 1880s, a group of fledgling cattle ranchers descended on the plains of southern Alberta. They were drawn by the promise of the West, where the grass seemed endless and they coul …
Cornelius O'Keefe
An entertaining biography of cattle baron and land magnate Cornelius O'Keefe, founder of the Historic O'Keefe Ranch.
From humble beginnings to a life of prosperity in the heart of the Okanagan Valley, Cornelius O'Keefe is best known today through the historic ranch in Vernon, BC, that still bears his name. Established in 1867, the O'Keefe Ranch was …
James Macleod
A vivid account of the life and times of the larger-than-life Canadian hero who played a major role in the peaceful development of western Canada.
A descendant of warriors, chiefs, and military men of the Clan MacLeod, James A.F. Macleod led an adventurous life that took him from his birthplace on Scotland's Isle of Skye to the Canadian west. After …
Cornelius O'Keefe
An entertaining biography of cattle baron and land magnate Cornelius O’Keefe, founder of the Historic O’Keefe Ranch.
From humble beginnings to a life of prosperity in the heart of the Okanagan Valley, Cornelius O’Keefe is best known today through the historic ranch in Vernon, BC, that still bears his name. Established in 1867, the O’Keefe Ra …
A Not-So-Savage Land
A richly illustrated exploration of the art, life, and historical impact of artist Frederick Whymper, who documented the landscape of the North American west.
Before the advent of photography, the topography of the colonial North American landscape was recorded by travelling artists hired to reproduce what they saw with unadulterated realism. One of …
Trail North
Winner (second prize), 2019 British Columbia Lieutenant Governor's Medal for Historical Writing
A revealing history of the ancient trail that served as a major transportation route between Washington and British Columbia and shaped the cultural and economic ties between the two jurisdictions.
Trails are the most enduring memorials of human occupation …
A Mill Behind Every Stump
The story of one family's settlement in the Cariboo and the culture of early sawmills that developed around them.
In 1922, the Judson family arrived in the Cariboo by covered wagon. The stories of their life on the remote homestead at Ruth Lake is told through this humorous and heartwarming book by local historian and author Marianne Van Osch, as re …
A Mill Behind Every Stump
The story of one family's settlement in the Cariboo and the culture of early sawmills that developed around them.
In 1922, the Judson family arrived in the Cariboo by covered wagon. The stories of their life on the remote homestead at Ruth Lake is told through this humorous and heartwarming book by local historian and author Marianne Van Osch, as re …
Children of the Kootenays
A warm-hearted memoir of a childhood spent living in various mining towns in the Kootenays throughout the 1930s and ’40s.
When young Shirley Doris Hall and her family moved to BC’s West Kootenay region in 1927, the area was a hub of mining activity. Shirley’s father, a cook, had no problem finding work at the mining camps, and the family dutif …
Children of the Kootenays
A warm-hearted memoir of a childhood spent living in various mining towns in the Kootenays throughout the 1930s and ’40s.
When young Shirley Doris Hall and her family moved to BC’s West Kootenay region in 1927, the area was a hub of mining activity. Shirley’s father, a cook, had no problem finding work at the mining camps, and the family dutif …
The Hundred-Year Trek
A vibrant look back through a century of student life, achievement, and activism at UBC.
“Sheldon Goldfarb’s skillful and lively storytelling makes this a valuable contribution to social history and a memoir to be enjoyed by all who lived it.”—from the foreword by Kim Campbell
From Pierre Berton to Kim Campbell, Debbie Brill, and Justin Trude …
Up in Arms
A rollicking wartime adventure on the BC coast.
A lot has changed in the world since Sophie, Molly, Mark, Harriet, Leticia, and Posy’s last adventure in The Silver Lining. Now it’s 1940, and the Second World War is making life back home in the United Kingdom very dangerous indeed. Although our intrepid crew has seen their fair share of precario …
Up In Arms
A rollicking wartime adventure on the BC coast.
A lot has changed in the world since Sophie, Molly, Mark, Harriet, Leticia, and Posy’s last adventure in The Silver Lining. Now it’s 1940, and the Second World War is making life back home in the United Kingdom very dangerous indeed. Although our intrepid crew has seen their fair share of precariou …
The Silver Lining
The year is 1938—two years since Sophie, Molly, Mark, Harriet, Leticia, and Posy made international headlines when they uncover the buried treasure of the notorious Brother XII. Since then, life has been decidedly un-exciting for the adventure-loving crew, who feel more at home on the rolling deck of a sailboat than in their stuffy boarding schoo …
Mark Bate
An insightful look at the first mayor of Nanaimo, BC, drawing heavily on his prolific and insightful written observations.
Mark Bate, elected Nanaimo’s first mayor in 1875, was a renaissance man. He loved music, writing, literature, the outdoors, community affairs, and of course politics. Bate served as mayor for sixteen terms—most by acclamati …
The Valiant Nellie McClung
Although her name today is synonymous with the women’s suffrage movement in Canada, Nellie McClung’s long and varied career covered several fields—from social activist to elected politician, from novelist to journalist. McClung was instrumental in Canadian women gaining the right to vote before their British and American counterparts—2016 m …
Lost Nuke
“A story seemingly drawn out of a Hollywood action script…Gripping stuff.”—Canada’s History
Just before midnight on February 13, 1950, three engines of a US Air Force B-36 intercontinental bomber caught fire over Canada’s northwest coast. The crew jumped, and the plane ditched somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Almost four years later, the …
Daggers Unsheathed
Daggers Unsheathed: The Political Assassination of Glen Clark is the story of the Glen Clark era in British Columbia politics. From the 1995 announcement of his NDP leadership aspirations to the day in 2002 when he was acquitted of criminal charges in a BC court, Glen Clark was the dominant personality in West Coast politics. Clark's style and poli …
Brother XII’s Treasure
The year is 1936, and seven children (aged eight to sixteen) are sprung from their boarding schools in England to the coast of British Columbia to embark on a summer sailing adventure like no other. On the way, they discover the true story of Brother XII, a shadowy figure recently disappeared from his island compound, who is rumoured to have buried …
Emily Carr
This is the story of a rebellious girl from British Columbia who travelled the world in pursuit of her calling only to find her true inspiration in the Canadian landscape she’d left behind. Both a prolific painter and an accomplished writer, Carr was more comfortable in the raw wilderness than in the tea rooms of London, and more at home with her …
Brother XII's Treasure
Shortlisted for the 2016-17 Chocolate Lily Book Award
“An absorbing, fast-paced book full of interesting characters, unexpected events, and a sense of . . . compelling quest and exploration.” —CM Magazine
The year is 1936, and seven children (aged eight to sixteen) are sprung from their respective boarding schools in England to the coast of B …
British Columbia and Yukon Gold Hunters
Although the 1848 discovery of gold in California was the first bonanza to trigger an invasion of migrants to North America’s Pacific Coast, it was relatively short-lived. Soon, grander findings farther north led to an even greater influx of gold hunters. In 1851, a twenty-seven-ounce gold nugget was found on Haida Gwaii, ushering in fifty years …
Henry Hudson
From the era of wooden sailing ships and Europe’s golden age of exploration, the story of famed British navigator Henry Hudson tells a classic tale of courage, ambition, and treachery on the high seas. As the leader of four Arctic voyages in 1607, 1608, 1609, and 1610, Hudson searched in vain for a navigable route through the polar ice that would …
