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July 1 - Canada Day
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CELA will be closed on Tuesday, July 1st for Canada Day. Our office will reopen and our Contact Centre services will resume on Wednesday, July 2nd. Enjoy your holiday!
Showing 1 - 20 of 14936 items
By André Aciman. 2025
Three hypnotic novellas about obsessional love, missed connections, and enduring regret by the bestselling author of Call Me by Your…
Name.The short fictions in Room on the Sea deal with the heart-wrenching vicissitudes of amorous ambivalence, in André Aciman's inimitably nostalgic, lyric style."The Gentleman from Peru" tells the story of the life-changing encounter of a group of friends with an enigmatic solitary guest in a hotel on the Amalfi Coast. "Room on the Sea" is a dialogue between a man and a woman who meet on jury duty and embark on a complex relationship. "Mariana" is a modern retelling of a famous seventeenth-century novel about a love affair between a nun and a swashbuckling, unreliable aristocrat.No one writes about the ups and downs, the yeses and nos, of contemporary love like Aciman. As The Times (London) writes: ”You don't so much read André Aciman's novels as tumble breathlessly into them.“By Rose Keating. 2025
&“This is weird girl fiction at its finest.&” —Lucy Rose &“Compassionate, gross, deeply compelling. A must-read.&” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)…
Striking, visceral, and brutally honest, Rose Keating&’s Oddbody is a captivating short story collection that delves into the weirdness of bodies and of existence itself through the voices of social outsiders and outcasts.In her debut collection, Rose Keating takes you on a bold journey through the intricacies of sex, shame, and womanhood. With ten enchanting short stories, she crafts an emotional masterpiece that challenges us to reflect on the movement and needs of our bodies. Strange yet utterly mesmerizing, Oddbody is a provocative exploration that feels both surprising and sincerely authentic. In &“Oddbody,&” a woman finds herself navigating a codependent relationship with a ghost, while &“Squirm&” portrays a daughter tending to her father as he devours himself from the inside out. &“Pineapple&” introduces us to a woman who opts to have feather wings surgically attached to her back. In &“Eggshells,&” a waitress gives birth to an egg during her breakfast shift. Each narrative in this collection is immersive, bizarre, and deeply empathetic, shining a light on women who dare to defy societal norms and invite you to question the conventions and milestones that determine success.By Clive Barker. 1992
“Menacing demons, wondrous miracles, sinister magic, and vivid characters make Thief a compulsive, lightning-paced tales that almost begs to be…
read aloud.”—Miami HeraldOne of horror master and international bestselling author Clive Barker’s classic early novels—the tale of a haunted house with many a dark secret, now available as a Harper Perennial Olive Edition.Be careful what you wish for, it might just come true . . .Mr. Hood's Holiday House has stood for a thousand years, welcoming children into its embrace. It is a place of miracles where every whim may be satisfied. There is a price to be paid, of course, but young Harvey Swick, bored with his life and beguiled by Mr. Hood's wonders, does not consider the consequences. It is only when the house shows its darker face—when Harvey discovers the pitiful creatures that dwell in its shadows—that he comes to doubt Mr. Hood's generosity.But the house and its mysterious architect will not release Harvey without a battle. Mr. Hood has plans for his young guest, a boy whose soul burns brighter than any he has encountered in ten centuries. . . .By Tim McLoughlin. 2022
An enthralling collection of short fiction and nonfiction that draw upon McLoughlin's three-decade career in the criminal justice system.“A wistful…
Irish sensibility and memories from a 30-year career as a peace officer in the New York City criminal justice system haunt this solid collection . . . With spare prose, McLoughlin creates memorable vignettes of urban life. Fans of Kent Anderson’s Liquor, Guns & Ammo will want to check this out.” —Publishers Weekly“Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms couldn’t be more New York. Tim McLoughlin drops a ton of big-city knowledge and wisdom, rich in lived-in detail, with humor that’s hard as the sidewalk.” —John Strausbaugh, author of City of SeditionIn Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Tim McLoughlin draws upon his three-decade career in the criminal justice system with his characteristic wit and his fascination with misfits and malfeasance. A lifetime immersed in New York City feeds short stories that evoke a landscape of characters rife with personal arrogance and misjudgment; and nonfiction essays about toeing the line when the line keeps disappearing. An opioid-addicted catsitter electronically eavesdrops on his neighbors only to hear devastating truths. A degenerate gambler stakes his life on a long shot because he sees three lucky numbers on the license plate of a passing car. In the nonfiction essays, we learn that the system plays a role in supporting vice, as long as it gets a cut. Altar boys compete to work weddings and funerals for tips in the shadow of predatory priests. Cops become robbers, and a mob boss just might be a civil rights icon. McLoughlin shines a light on worlds that few have access to. A recurring theme in his urban, often New York–centric work is chronic displacement, people standing still in a city that is always changing. These are McLoughlin’s ghosts, these casualties of progress, and he holds them dear and celebrates them.By Marc Ribot. 2021
The paperback edition of iconoclastic guitar player Marc Ribot’s darkly funny and subversive collection of writing, featuring brand-new essays not…
included in the hardcover.“A slim yet powerful book in which Marc Ribot blends bits of memoir with strange little fictions, many of which are based on his own life and career.” —Wall Street JournalThroughout his genre-defying career as one of the most innovative musicians of our time, iconoclastic guitar player Marc Ribot has consistently defied expectation at every turn. Here, in the expanded paperback edition of Ribot’s first collection of writing, we see that same uncompromising sensibility at work as he playfully interrogates our assumptions about music, life, and death. Through essays—including some new material not included in the hardcover—short stories, and the occasional unfilmable film “mistreatment” that showcase the sheer range of his voice, Unstrung captures an artist whose versatility on the page rivals his dexterity onstage. In the first section of the book, "Lies and Distortion," Ribot turns his attention to his instrument--"my relation to the guitar is one of struggle; I'm constantly forcing it to be something else"--and reflects on his influences (and friends) like Robert Quine (the Voidoids) and producer Hal Willner (Saturday Night Live), while delivering an impassioned plea on behalf of artists' rights. Elsewhere, we glimpse fragments of Ribot's life as a traveling musician--he captures both the monotony of touring as well as small moments of beauty and despair on the road. In the heart of the collection, "Sorry, We're Experiencing Technical Difficulties," Ribot offers wickedly humorous short stories that synthesize the best elements of the Russian absurdist tradition with the imaginative heft of George Saunders. Taken together, these stories and essays cement Ribot's position as one of the most dynamic and creative voices of our time.By Lonely Christopher. 2011
Dennis Cooper unveils a mesmerizing debut story collection for his Little House on the Bowery fiction series.“[A] provocative and refreshing…
debut collection.” —Publishers Weekly “Praise seems superfluous for a book as accomplished, cohesive, and devastating as Lonely Christopher’s debut collection, so consider these words admiration instead, and admonishment: if you still think fiction counts for anything, then you should buy this book right now.” —Dale Peck, author of What We Lost and Time To Say GoodbyeA selection of Dennis Cooper’s Little House on the Bowery series. Two boys lie on a bed, one of them is already dead; they listen to Glenn Gould playing Bach and talk about suicide and love. A lonely narrator mourns the end of a relationship and the disappearance of a mysterious object as a frustrated artist jumps out of a moving car on his birthday and runs for the last streetlamp in the universe. Awkward parents and angsty teens negotiate a dark suburban landscape, searching for something they can’t name, spelling out balletic sentences of failure and shame. Helicopters menace the night sky, a horse is murdered in a kitchen, victims go missing in swamps of ambiguity, and everybody waits for what the construction of a new road into town will bring: the end of the world or something worse.The Mechanics of Homosexual Intercourse, a radical map of shortcomings in our daily experiences in the form of a debut story collection, presents thematically related windows into serious emotional trouble and monstrous love. Lonely Christopher combines a striking emotional grammar with an unyielding imagination in the lovely-ugly architecture of his stories.By Don Lee. 2022
A thrilling new story collection from acclaimed writer Don Lee exploring Asian American identity, spanning decades and continents.“Don Lee is…
one of those masterful storytellers who is both classic and modern, who can transport you into any setting, with any character.” —The TODAY Show, recommended by author Weike Wang“The organizing conceit of all [Lee’s] fiction has remained consistent: Asian Americans are not monoliths . . . Lee narrates from a collective perspective, his stories offering a kaleidoscopic vision of all the ways it feels to be yellow.”—New York Times Book ReviewTwenty-one years after the publication of his landmark debut collection Yellow, Don Lee returns to the short story form for his sixth book, The Partition.The Partition is an updated exploration of Asian American identity, this time with characters who are presumptive model minorities in the arts, academia, and media. Spanning decades, these nine novelistic stories traverse an array of cities, from Tokyo to Boston, Honolulu to El Paso, touching upon transient encounters in local bars, restaurants, and hotels.Culminating in a three-story cycle about a Hollywood actor, The Partition incisively examines heartbreak, identity, family, and relationships—the characters searching for answers to universal questions: Where do I belong? How can I find love? What defines an authentic self?By Tyna Legault Taylor. 2025
Learn about the rhythms of the seasons with Joshua in this captivating read-aloud story for ages 5 to 8. Joshua…
loves being on the land. When the weather is warm, Joshua and his dad gather mint from the shores of Animbiigoo Zaagi’igan Anishinaabek (Lake Nipigon First Nation) in northeastern Ontario. But when will that be? It’s not when the leaves are changing colour. It’s not when the snow falls from the sky. It’s not when the flowers are budding. When is it time to gather mint from the land? In the back of the book, find a glossary and pronunciation guide for the Swampy Cree and Anishinaabemowin words featured throughout the story.By Disney Book Group. 2017
Read along with Disney! It's another merry unbirthday in Wonderland, but March Hare and Mad Hatter are feeling a bit…
unsatisfied with their usual teacups. In attempt to make them larger and grander, havoc wreaks instead. With the help of Cheshire Cat, follow along as the two try to correct their mistakes.By Disney Book Group. 2017
Read along with Disney! It's a day of the Blues for Brer Bunnie and he doesn't feel like doing much.…
Will Brer Papa be able to help him find his Happy Place? Follow along with word for word narration as Brer Papa helps his son bounce back from the Brer Blues.By Disney Book Group. 2017
Read along with Disney! Mickey is working in outer space and Minnie wants to space-mail him Gingerbread Robots. But when…
the mischievous Chip and Dale snatch Pluto's cookie delivery away, it's up to Pluto to save the day and make sure the cookies make it safe and sound to Mars.By Disney Book Group. 2017
Read along with Disney! Ace photographer Donald Duck is on a special expedition! Commissioned by Rare Birds magazine, he is…
on a mission to find and photograph the rare and mischief Aracuan Bird. Follow along as he traverses through Adventureland for this prankster bird.By Disney Book Group. 2017
Read along with Disney! One day, a little puppy with nowhere to go arrived at the Main Street USA train…
station. Seeking for a place to call his own, follow along as the little pup explores the town in order to find the perfect home.By David Updike. 2009
In this brilliantly told short story collection, critically acclaimed author David Updike skillfully portrays the multi-faceted nature of love and…
of the heart. From a father's painful realization his son has discovered the dark heart of racism still beats, to a quiet love affair that needs an audience to bloom; from the bumbling of a professor who unwittingly falls for one of his students to the wistful memories of a bittersweet affair tinged in regret, Updike portrays the intricacies of loving someone with candor. Full of sparkling wonder and poignant melancholy alike, Old Girlfriends is a clear-eyed vision of the world we live in. Drifting from the unrequited to the secretive, the familial to the first poetic moments, this soulful collection leaves no avenue of expression untouched.By Laura Adamczyk. 2018
Named a Fall Pick by Boston Globe, ELLE, Library Journal and MyDomainAn eerie debut collection featuring missing parents, unrequited love,…
and other uncomfortable momentsA man hangs from the ceiling of an art gallery. A woman spells out messages to her sister using her own hair. Children deemed “bad” are stolen from their homes. In Hardly Children, Laura Adamczyk’s rich and eccentric debut collection, familiar worlds—bars, hotel rooms, cities that could very well be our own—hum with uncanny dread. The characters in Hardly Children are keyed up, on the verge, full of desire. They’re lost, they’re in love with someone they shouldn’t be, they’re denying uncomfortable truths using sex or humor. They are children waking up to the threats of adulthood, and adults living with childlike abandon.With command, caution, and subtle terror, Adamczyk shapes a world where death and the possibility of loss always emerge. Yet the shape of this loss is never fully revealed. Instead, it looms in the periphery of these stories, like an uncomfortable scene viewed out of the corner of one’s eye.By April Ayers Lawson. 2016
A confident and mesmerizing fiction debut, from the winner of the Plimpton PrizeSet in the South, at the crossroads of…
a world that is both secular and devoutly Christian, April Ayers Lawson's stories evoke the inner lives of young women and men navigating sexual, emotional, and spiritual awakenings. In "The Negative Effects of Homeschooling," Conner, sixteen, accompanies his grieving mother to the funeral of her best friend, Charlene, a woman who was once a man. In "The Way You Must Play Always," Gretchen, who looks young even for thirteen, heads into her weekly piano lesson in nervous anticipation of her next illicit meeting with her teacher's brother, Wesley. Thin and sickly, wasting from a brain tumor, Wesley spends his days watching pornography and smoking pot, and yet Gretchen can only interpret his advances as the first budding of love. And in the title story, Jake grapples with the growing chasm between him and his wife, Sheila, who was still a virgin when they wed. At a cocktail party thrown by a wealthy donor to his hospital, he ponders the intertwining imperatives of marriage--sex and love, violation and trust, spirituality and desire--even as he finds himself succumbing to the temptations of his host.Self-assured and sensual, Virgin and Other Stories is the first work of a young writer of unusual mastery.By Sam Lipsyte. 2000
An intense, mordantly funny collection of short fiction from Sam Lipsyte, author of Home Land and The Ask.The Picador paperback…
edition includes an excerpt from The Ask.A man with an "old soul" finds himself at a Times Square peep show, looking for more than just a little action. A young man goes into some serious regression after finding his deceased mother's stash of morphine. A group of summer-camp sadists return to the scene of the crime. Lipsyte's brutally funny narratives tread morally ambiguous terrain, where desperate characters stumble over hope, or sometimes merely stumble. Written with ferocious wit and surprising empathy, Venus Drive is a potent collection of stories from "a wickedly gifted writer" (Robert Stone).By Etgar Keret. 2010
A dark and surreal collection of stories from the author of The Nimrod Flipout and The Girl on the Fridge.…
With Suddenly, a Knock on the Door, "It's tempting to say," according to Jonathan Safran Foer, "[these stories] are his most Kafkaesque, but in fact they are his most Keretesque."Bringing up a child, lying to the boss, placing an order in a fast-food restaurant: in Etgar Keret's short story collection, daily life is complicated, dangerous, and full of yearning. In his most playful and most mature work yet, the living and the dead, silent children and talking animals, dreams and waking life coexist in an uneasy world. Overflowing with absurdity, humor, sadness, and compassion, the tales in Suddenly, a Knock on the Door establish Etgar Keret—declared a "genius" by The New York Times—as one of the most original writers of his generation.By David Charters. 2002
In this remarkable debut collection of short stories, David Charters reveals the secretive world of international bankers, brokers, and business…
executives with an insider's acuity. Sharp suits, fast cars, lavish expense accounts, and exclusive clubs are the comforts of lives lived at a furious pace, where betrayal and blackmail are paths to success, extramarital sex is an equal opportunity job perk, and an initial public offering might be a matter of life or death. An ambitious middle manager offers his wife to his new boss. An overheard conversation between two powerful executives leads to unexpected consequences for the eavesdropper. A cocky young investment banker is sent to Moscow on his first big opportunity---and finds more than he bargained for. A Ferrari-driving businesswoman plays a wicked prank after an anonymous sexual encounter. These and other characters are brought to life with a few deft brushstrokes, as each story veers through twists and turns to a surprising end. David Charters is a keen-eyed observer and denizen of this world, and the stories of The Insiders are witty, suspenseful, entertaining---and too close to truth for comfort.By Jack Livings. 2014
"Jack Livings's stories of China are marvels of the imagination." —Paul Harding, author of TinkersSet in the shifting landscape of…
contemporary China, Jack Livings's The Dog explodes the country's cultural and social fault lines, revealing a nation accustomed to rations, bitter struggle, and the stranglehold of communism as it confronts a generation rife with the promise of unforeseen prosperity. In this riveting, richly imagined collection, a wealthy factory owner—once a rural peasant—refuses to help the victims of an earthquake until his daughter starts a relief effort of her own; a marginalized but powerful Uyghur gangster clashes with his homosexual grandson; and a dogged journalist is forced to resign as young writers in "pink Izod golf shirts and knockoff Italian loafers" write his stories out from under him. With spare, penetrating prose, Livings gives shape to the anonymous faces in the crowd and illuminates the tensions, ironies, and possibilities of life in modern China. As heartbreaking as it is hopeful, The Dog marks the debut of a startling and wildly imaginative new voice in fiction.