Canada Reads

The 10th anniversary of the Canada Reads program, hosted by CBC, is getting ready to start the debate portion of the program. This year the novels were picked by the public in a campaign that started back in October. The public vote determined the top 40 essential Canadian novels which were then put to public vote until the final five were chosen.

Feb. 7, 8, and 9th will be the air dates of the hour long debates to determine which of the five finalists will be this years Canada Reads selection. The debates will air on CBC Radio One and will be hosted by Jian Ghomeshi in front of a live audience.

This years final five are: (covers click through to nominee pages with info about authors and defenders for each novel)

The Best Laid Plans

by Terry Fallis

Defended by:
Ali Velshi

The Bone Cage

by Angie Abdou

Defended by:
Georges Laraque

The Birth House

by Ami McKay

Defended by:
Debbie Travis

Essex County

by Jeff Lemire

Defended by:
Sara Quin

Unless

by Carol Shields

Defended by:
Lorne Cardinal

You can listen to all the lead ups and the actual debates on CBC's website. Here's the direct link to the listen page: Watch/Listen at CBC