The bestselling Canadian books of the week

Here are the bestselling Canadian books from May 14-20, 2023.

Bestseller lists are compiled by Bookmanager using weekly sales stats from over 260 Canadian independent stores.

Canadian fiction

Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune is the #1 Canadian fiction book this week.

Meet Me at the Lake finds Fern Brookbanks, a 32-year-old hotel manager, stuck: she can't quite stop thinking about one perfect day she spent in her twenties. By chance, she met a man named Will Baxter and the two spent a romantic 24-hours in Toronto, after which they promised to meet up one year later, but Will never showed up. Now, instead of living in the city like she thought she would, Fern manages her mother's Muskoka resort by the lake, a role she promised herself she'd never take on. Disillusioned with her life, Fern is shocked when Will shows up at her door, suitcase in hand, asking to help. Why is he here after all this time and more importantly, can she trust him to stay? It's clear Will has a secret but Fern isn't sure if she's ready to hear it all these years later. 

See the full Canadian fiction list below.

1. Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
2. Old Babes in the Woods by Margaret Atwood
3. Greenwood by Michael Christie
4. Standing in the Shadows by Peter Robinson
5. Snow Road Station by Elizabeth Hay
6. To Track a Traitor by Iona Whishaw
7. Sea of Tranquillity by Emily St. John Mandel
8. Women Talking by Miriam Toews
9. Five Little Indians by Michelle Good
10. The Sleeping Car Porter by Suzette Mayr                                                                                             

Canadian nonfiction

Ducks by Kate Beaton is the #1 Canadian nonfiction book this week.

Ducks is an autobiographical graphic novel that recounts author Kate Beaton's time spent working in the Alberta oil sands. With the goal of paying off her student loans, Beaton leaves her tight-knit seaside Nova Scotia community and heads west, where she encounters harsh realities, including the everyday trauma that no one discusses. 

Ducks won Canada Reads 2023, it was championed by Jeopardy! star Mattea Roach.

• Kate Beaton's affecting Ducks dives into the lonely life of labour in Alberta's oilsands

 See the full Canadian nonfiction list below.

1. Ducks by Kate Beaton
2. The Myth of Normal by Dr. Gabor Maté with Daniel Maté
3. Run Towards the Danger by Sarah Polley
4. 21 Things You May Not Know about the Indian Act by Bob Joseph
5. Outsider by Brett Popplewell
6. Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard
7. Held by the Land by Leigh Joseph
8. Embers by Richard Wagamese
9. When the Body Says No by Dr. Gabor Maté     
10. Unearthing by Kyo Maclear                       

Canadian kids

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline is the #1 Canadian kids book this week.

In the dystopian world of The Marrow Thieves, climate change has ravaged the Earth and a continent-wide hunt and slaughter of Indigenous people is underway. Wanted for their bone marrow, which contains the lost ability to dream, a group of Indigenous people seek refuge in the old lands. 

• The message Cherie Dimaline has for young Indigenous readers

See the full Canadian kids book list below.

1. The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline
2. The Barren Grounds by David A. Robertson
3. Sometimes I Feel Like a River by Danielle Daniel, illustrated by Josée Bisaillon
4. Be a Good Ancestor by Leona Prince and Gabrielle Prince, illustrated by Carla Joseph
5. The Song That Called Them Home by David A. Robertson, illustrated by Maya McKibbin
6. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Sheila McGraw
7. Funeral Songs for Dying Girls by Cherie Dimaline
8. A is for Anemone by Robert Budd, illustrated by Roy Henry Vickers 
9. Carson Crosses Canada by Linda Bailey, illustrated by Kass Reich
10. The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko