Words At Large

With the Canada Reads debates starting next week, here’s your opportunity to listen to actors reading from all five books. The Between the Covers podcast offers selections from each novel to listen to at your leisure. Prepare for the discussion and sort out which story you think should end up on top.

The Fat Woman Next Door Is Pregnant by Michel Tremblay, translated by Sheila Fischman

Michel Tremblay's portrait of 1942 Montreal comes to life through the eyes, ears and imaginations of a number of its inhabitants. In this selection, read by France Perras, we meet Beatrice and Mercedes, two lively ladies who have their own way of surviving tough times.

The Outlander by Gil Adamson
Gil Adamson's suspenseful debut novel stalks turn-of-the-century characters across the prairies and all the way to the Rockies. In this selection, read by Ann-Marie McDonald, a young widow tries to outrun two ominous men packing rifles.

 
Fruit by Brian Francis
Brian Francis' novel takes a whimsical look at the challenges of being 13 in the suburbs in the 1980s. In this selection, read by David Beazely, we learn about the tyranny of school cliques.
 

The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill
Lawrence Hill’s novel centers on a woman of remarkable insight and fortitude who overcomes slavery, learning to read and write and finally carrying her story to the wider world. In this selection, actor Kim Roberts brings the resilient Aminata to life.

Mercy Among the Children by David Adams Richards
How should we act in the face of evil? In his novel, David Adams Richards explores the depths of human compassion and violence. In this excerpt, read by Jim Fowler, a young man tries to understand his father’s choices.

Each episode of Between the Covers is between 15 and seventeen minutes. If you missed previous podcasts, you can download them at Between the Covers podcasts.

And if you’re interested in readings of other Canadian books, check out the Hear A Reading page on the Between the Covers site.