Bookends with Mattea Roach
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Bookends with Mattea Roach
When the book ends, the conversation begins. Mattea Roach speaks with writers who have something to say about their work, the world and our place in it. You’ll always walk away with big questions to ponder and new books to read.
Episodis Recents
127 episodis
What does “worldly” mean to a Jehovah’s Witness?
Tamara Jong grew up going door-to-door for the Jehovah’s Witnesses … and her new memoir, Worldly Girls, is all about breaking away from the faith. For...
Justice for Murder Bimbo!
Murder Bimbo is a new book about a sex worker-turned assassin … and it’s the debut novel by Rebecca Novack, a former priest-in-training. The story fol...
Need cash fast? Become a corpse bride today
If you’re worried about being lonely in the afterlife, don’t worry. Just hire a corpse bride to keep you company in the coffin! In Lindsay Wong’s new...
Why an ADHD diagnosis had this author rethinking everything
Carla Ciccone was 39 years old when she was diagnosed with ADHD. That diagnosis changed everything for her ... and she shares her experience in her ne...
Capitalism, dating apps and why we love Edmonton
If you’re feeling jaded by money, politics and modern dating … you’re not the only one. Conor Kerr’s new novella, Beaver Hills Forever, follows the ev...
For this author, losing an eye was “kind of enlightening”
What would you do if there was a jellyfish in your eye? And what if it started multiplying, blocking your vision completely? That’s the premise of The...
This poem is straight out of a dream
The winner of the 2025 CBC Poetry Prize is the Vancouver poet Jordan Redekop-Jones. Jordan’s winning poem, Mixed Girl as Cosmogonic Myth, was inspired...
1 marriage, 2 mid-life crises … and a guy named Gluten
“You’ve changed” isn’t necessarily something you want to hear … especially when you’re trying to keep a marriage alive. That’s the premise of Ian Will...
How far would you go for your family?
Would you steal? Would you kill? In Megha Majumdar’s new novel, A Guardian and a Thief, a mother prepares to escape a city in the midst of climate col...
Buffoon or genius? What makes a cult leader?
To be a good cult leader, you’ll need some natural charisma and a pathological desire for control … and according to Rob Benvie, it might also help if...
For Louise Penny, stories come from hurt
Louise Penny is one of the biggest mystery novelists alive today … but it didn’t start out that way. Her latest novel, The Black Wolf, is the 20th in...
Revisiting Writers & Company: Happy 250th, Jane Austen!
Jane Austen is one of the most enduring novelists of all time. But what do we know about the woman behind the stories? To celebrate Austen’s 250th bir...
So your whole family thinks you’re reincarnated — what now?
After releasing her breakout hit My Sister the Serial Killer in 2018, Oyinkan Braithwaite struggled to write under the pressure of high expectations....
All I want for Christmas … is a fake boyfriend?
Christmas is a time for togetherness, good food … and lying to your family about your love life. At least, that’s the case in Uzma Jalaluddin’s new ho...
Video games are radical. Not in the way you think
Video games make you violent. Video games corrupt the youth. Video games rot your brain! You’ve probably heard that narrative before … but Kawika Guil...
Three writers on the monsters that made them
What’s more horrifying than slashers, monsters … and Vancouver real estate? This week, Bookends brings you on-stage at the Vancouver Writers Fest. Bac...
A priest and an artist walk into a bar
… and they can’t keep their hands off each other. That’s the premise at the centre of Brandon Taylor’s latest novel, Minor Black Figures. It’s about a...
Anarchists have bigger hearts than you think
What’s more romantic than planning an assassination together? You’d have to ask the radical activist Emma Goldman, who did just that with her revoluti...
John Irving’s new novel returns to a familiar orphanage
John Irving’s books are on many readers’ list of favourites. He’s written novels like The World According to Garp and The Cider House Rules, which you...
This poem took 16 straight hours to write
It’s a bit of an understatement to say that Canisia Lubrin has a way with words. Last year, she took home the Carol Shields Prize for her debut novel,...
Here’s what you have wrong about teen moms
Leila Mottley was only 17 years-old when she wrote her debut novel, Nightcrawling … and she was 20 when she became the youngest author ever to make th...
Chris Hadfield — from astronaut to author
You might know Chris Hadfield, decorated astronaut and former Commander of the International Space Station. But do you know Chris Hadfield, the pilot,...
A fictional ad agency — and its very real ghosts
In Aurora Stewart de Peña's debut novel, Julius Julius, ads are inescapable … which isn’t far off from real life. If you ever feel unsettled by the wa...
Kiran Desai’s novel is worth the 20-year wait
Not many people can say that a Booker prize nomination feels like deja vu … but Kiran Desai is one of those rare people. Twenty years after her first...
What is a stag dance?
Torrey Peters was in the woods building her own sauna when she came up with the titular story in her new collection, called Stag Dance. The story is a...
Zadie Smith never thought she’d tell this story
It’s hard to believe that Zadie Smith was just 24 years old when she wrote White Teeth, the book that made her a literary star. 25 years later, Zadie...
Can your nail tech throw a mean right hook?
In the new novel Pick a Colour, the answer to that question is a resounding yes. The debut novel from Souvankham Thammavongsa centres on Ning, the own...
Ian McEwan has hope for humanity — here’s why
A century from now, how will historians look back on your life? In his latest novel, What We Can Know, Ian McEwan imagines the future in 100 years. In...
Why Mona Awad gave the Bunnies a say
The bunnies are back … and they’re bloodier than ever. In We Love You, Bunny, Mona Awad returns to the surreal world of her best selling novel Bunny....
Where do North Korean spies go for dinner?
Soju, kimchi, gun fights, car chases … and profound reflections on the Korean diaspora. Whether you’re hungry for food or for action, Jinwoo Park’s de...
Think Stonehenge rocks? So does Ken Follett
Ken Follett is one of the most successful authors alive today. He’s sold almost 200 million books, and readers have devoured his stories about the Bla...
What is extreme caretaking?
The winner of the 2025 CBC Nonfiction Prize is The Invisible Woman by Laura MacGregor. It's a deeply personal and heartfelt story Laura wrote about he...
R.F. Kuang raises a little hell
After massive hits like The Poppy War, Babel and Yellowface, R.F. Kuang’s new novel takes readers to hell — quite literally. Katabasis follows two gra...
What would it take to become the first Cherokee astronaut?
Statistically, your odds of becoming an astronaut are close to zero. You have to make some pretty extreme sacrifices to reach the stars, and that’s th...
What happens to fiction in times of war?
A snail scientist takes part in a kidnapping scheme to protest the Ukrainian romance industry. That's the story Maria Reva was writing in her debut no...
Why this comics legend is just getting started
Growing up in rural Ontario, Jeff Lemire bought superhero comics at the local minimart. Years later, he’s one of the biggest comic book creators in Ca...
Who was the woman Kafka loved?
Milena Jesenská was a courageous journalist, translator and resister of the Nazi regime. So why do most people only know her as Franz Kafka’s lover? M...
Reliving the soundtrack of the 2000s
Feeling nostalgic for the music of the aughts? You’re not the only one. Holly Brickley’s debut novel, Deep Cuts, follows a music-obsessed writer named...
Why this Pulitzer Prize winner is done with writing books
Tessa Hulls won a Pulitzer Prize for her first book. So why is it also her last? Tessa’s graphic memoir, Feeding Ghosts, unravels the stories of three...
Bookends Bonus: Death, sex, money … and podcasting?
Here at Bookends, we never shy away from difficult conversations … and neither does Anna Sale, the host of the popular Slate podcast Death, Sex and Mo...