Holiday Reading List – Fiction | Canadian Gift Guide

Holiday Reading List – Fiction

Posted by Canadian Gift Guide on December 12, 2014 · 189 Comments

For my final trick – at least when it comes to books – this holiday season, I bring you a roundup of some of the best and buzziest fiction of the year. From literary picks to mainstream mainstays to offbeat indies to frothy chick lit, there’s something on this list for every avid reader on YOUR list. So read on, and read on!
Friendship by Emily Gould – $30
Perfect For: Your niece that’s ready to graduate from YA novels.
Reminded Me Of: HBO’s hit TV series Girls.
What’s Up?: I compare this book to Girls – and I’m not alone – because it follows the lives of two young women living in New York City and teetering on the brink of adulthood, much like the characters on the HBO show. The main difference however, is this book is essentially about that last push into maturity: the proverbial wake up calls that make Bev and Amy – two seemingly different girls with a tight friendship borne after working at the same publishing house – face up to the end of their 20s. Bev is staring down an empty bank account, nursing a broken heart, and working temp jobs to make ends meet when a shocking revelation causes her to consider somewhat extreme measures of help in order to keep her head above water. Amy is a slightly more privileged girl, living in her own apartment with her gorgeous artist boyfriend, yet she’s still reeling after a major career setback landed her at a pointless, if fruitful, job that she hates – and hates even more when it threatens to put her in the spotlight. Together, the two girls must grapple with the fact they aren’t quite the carefree twentysomethings they were when they first bonded – as well as what they want from their lives going forward. The book is about friendship, yes, but it’s moreso about how friends come and go as your life shifts – the ultimate question being whether Amy and Bev’s friendship is worth holding onto. It’s a great read for any young woman that’s in a similar state to our heroines, or perhaps for those just looking for a genuine, insightful look at womanhood, friendship and not being able to have it all.

We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas – $32
Perfect For: The family matriarch.
Reminded Me Of: A more accessible Jonathan Franzen or Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates.
What’s Up?: If you enjoy a good character study, then you’ll love this richly imagined family story, where the characters don’t just leap off the page – they practically occupy a place around your dinner table they’re so vividly drawn. The book follows first generation Irish-American Eileen Tumulty as she strives to elevate herself beyond her parents’ humble beginnings and her own harsh upbringing, in part by aligning herself with Ed Leary, an unexpected choice for a husband that essentially functions as an escape hatch for Eileen. However, Eileen and Ed’s path to the great American dream is ruptured by some actions I can’t speak of for fear of ruining the novel for you – but let’s just say the book essentially details the fallout that keeps Eileen from “the ineffable something she’d been chasing.” The book covers decades of Eileen’s life, starting with her childhood through to the new millennium, and while you do get to see her world through husband Ed and son Connell’s eyes, it’s really Eileen’s beating heart at the centre of this heartfelt, measured, insightful novel.

Shopaholic to the Stars by Sophie Kinsella – $32
Perfect For: Your gal pals that have followed the misadventures of Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) over the past 13 (!) years.
Reminded Me Of: How much fun it’s been to follow one of fiction’s most enduring characters – Kinsella is basically the doyen of chick lit, so it’s hard to compare her work to anyone!
What’s Up?: As I was reading this book, the one thing I kept on mulling over was how much has changed since we were first introduced to Rebecca Bloomwood, a finance journalist with a serious shopping problem, back in 2001. Not only has Becky herself changed, but so has the world around her (which operates on a weird kind of suspended timeline) – from the technology that people use to the trendiest names and designers that Becky name drops. In this seventh installment in the wildly popular Shopaholic series, Becky has followed her husband Luke to Los Angeles, where he’s been contracted to rehab the image of Sage Seymour, a beautiful if tempestuous actress. Becky is immediately swept up in all the L.A. cliches – chasing fame, becoming image self-obsessed and attending a pseudo-rehab center called Golden Peace. More importantly, Becky has her sights set on becoming a Hollywood stylist; natural evolution for the former personal shopper. But as Becky gets caught up in a web of schemes and general fame gaming, she fails to notice how the relationships in her life are being compromised by her Tinseltown dreams. Surprisingly, this book isn’t really about shopping. You’ll see little flourishes of Becky splashing out on things (notably at the rehab center gift shop, where she’s trying to treat her shopping addiction) but the story is really more about a larger, and far less flattering / fun aspect of Becky’s personality that ultimately feeds her shopping habits: an extreme case of self-centeredness. This isn’t exactly a new road to take everyone’s favourite Shopaholic down – we all knew she was a tad self-involved – but it is the front and center focus of this entry into the series, which leaves things in such a state of upheaval, it’s almost a slight condemnation of Becky’s behaviour throughout the entire series. It’s not all bad though. Becky means well, and Kinsella manages to make her plenty sympathetic despite digging a very large hole for herself – and certainly opens up the possibility of redemption for Becky once and for all. Might the conclusion of the series be on the horizon?

Adult Onset by Ann-Marie MacDonald – $32
Perfect For: All the stay-at-home parents out there that wouldn’t mind someone that ‘gets’ it.
Reminded Me Of: Fellow Canadian author Margaret Laurence’s time-shifting narratives.
What’s Up?: Spending seven days more or less in a single household, through the eyes of a semi-retired stay-at-home mother and young adult author may sound like a relatively bland premise for a book – but I assure you, there’s plenty of subtle dynamics at play, just as there would be in real life, in this tense, emotion-ridden story. Our heroine is Mary-Rose, aka MR, aka Mister, who is missing her partner Hilary, a talented creative type in her own right that’s off being a breadwinner by directing a play in Calgary. MR meanwhile, is slowly but surely unraveling, as are the people around her it might seem. Her mother is grappling with an extreme bout of forgetfulness that seems to be a little more serious than ‘old age’. Her father suddenly seems impossible to communicate with as MR struggles with drafting a simple, innocuous email to him over the course of the novel. And her brother, rather than being a resource during this oddly bleak and lonely time, is instead offloading his problems onto an already at-capacity MR (who’s also dealing with some recurring physical side effects from a shadowy childhood condition). Like most of MacDonald’s works, this is a family story. Although it’s a little less sprawling than her other books (including the Oprah-praised Fall On Your Knees) owing to its somewhat singular setting and short timeline, the story often shuffles into the distant past, touching on her mother’s miscarriages and MR’s own namesake. In other words, while it’s a slight departure from MacDonald’s other novels, fans of the author will once again be entertained through and through.

Landline by Rainbow Rowell – $28.99
Perfect For: Anyone in the throes of marriage and family life.
Reminded Me Of: Pretty much any story with some kind of ‘time travel’ element – Back to the Future, A Christmas Carol, you name it.
What’s Up?: After spending the past year wowing the young adult crowd, Rainbow Rowell has hopped back into the world of adult fiction with her latest novel on marriage, family and relationships, Landline. Georgie McCool is living something of a dream life – she’s got an amazingly creative and loving husband, two adorable daughters, a primo job writing for a comedy show, and the chance to finally live out her lifelong goal of becoming a showrunner of her own comedy. Of course, life isn’t as flawless as it seems, as Georgie reluctantly parts ways with her husband over the holidays owing to a work conflict, and then begins to question – is he leaving her? What part of her life is really the dream worth fighting for? In a panic, Georgie tries to get in touch with her husband, Neal, using the old landline in her childhood bedroom. Only when she does, she isn’t speaking with her married-for-a-decade hubby. She’s talking to Neal before they were married, during a tumultuous week in their relationship right before the holidays that almost ended them before they began. As Georgie reflects on the stepping stones that led to this particular series of moments in her relationship with Neal, she begins to worry – will talking to a past version of her husband erase her beloved, if challenging, present? Let me assure you, while there is something of an unexplained sci-fi-esque element in this book, I’d hardly say it disrupts the flow of the book, which is really a study on commitment and monogamy more than anything. It’s an incredibly insightful read that’s equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming (like all of Rowell’s work) and will have you sighing in agreement, and smiling at the 90s references!

The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters – $34
Perfect For: The historian in your household.
Reminded Me Of: The surprising levels of drama in programs like Downton Abbey.
What’s Up?: In a nutshell, this book is a portrait of life after the first World War. As you’re likely familiar, the wars opened up opportunities for women – particularly with WW2, but even in WW1, women were suddenly looked at as valuable members of society…that is, until the men returned and put them back in their ‘rightful’ places. Such is the case with Frances Wray, a debutante of sorts approaching spinsterhood (in part because she’s actually a lesbian) and living with her mom. After her deceased father’s mismanagement of the family funds, Frances and her mother have been humiliated into taking ‘paying guests’ in the large home that is their last valuable possession. Their boarders are a young, modern couple named Lillian and Leonard Barber, their marriage fraught and their presence in the manor uncomfortably felt. I don’t want to say too much more from there – and that’s truly the tricky part of reviewing fiction – but in short, this book is shockingly gripping. If you thought historical fiction was a snooze, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what a riveting page-turner this one is as Waters turns the screws in her characters (and in the reader). And if you live for the detail of superbly written historical fiction, well then, Waters is practically in a league of her own.

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult – $30
Perfect For: Any fans of Picoult’s prolific writings, as well as those who love elephants.
Reminded Me Of: A famous movie that I can’t mention the name of for fear of ruining the book!
What’s Up?: Over the years, Jodi Picoult’s books have become less about sensationalist courtroom drama, and more about lovingly researched, incredibly thorough stories that tie into, well, a more sensationalist core drama. The story here surrounds Jenna, an industrious tween who lives with her grandmother after a mysterious and tragic evening at her parents’ former elephant reserve caused her father to have a mental break and her mother to vanish without a trace. Like most Picoult books, the story is told in four rotating perspectives. In the present, we have Jenna, who enlists the services of a washed-up psychic named Serenity and an alcoholic PI named Virgil, to determine once and for all what really went down that night. In the past however, we also get perspective from Jenna’s mother Alice, a scientist who studied elephants, with a niche focus on how they grieve. Honestly, if you love elephants you will fall in love with this story – so much of it is the detailed research and astonishing findings Picoult has uncovered (from others’ studies, to be clear) about elephants, their emotions, and their incredible social hierarchies. The present day drama, while compelling, admittedly didn’t have quite the same ethical conundrum draw for me that Picoult’s other books have presented, but the story still tugs at your heartstrings – particularly with a game-changing development late in the book.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr – $32.50
Perfect For: That friend you love dissecting good books with.
Reminded Me Of: A smattering of other war-set novels such as Life After Life and The Book Thief.
What’s Up?: This is that book that everyone I know that’s read it was all like you have to read this book. And I can’t say I disagree. The story follows the lives of two children / youths during the leadup to and actual World War II – Marie-Laure Leblanc, a blind girl who becomes part of the French resistance, and Werner Pfenning, an orphan who becomes part of the Hitler Youth. The story hops between the two youths, living in separate countries, growing up in very separate ways, and also skips back and forward through time. The titular ‘light’ refers to the invisible webs that connect many of us, and eventually link Marie and Werner’s stories together more directly. Hailed as one of the most beautiful, powerful books of the year, there are so many things to fall for here: the wondrous characterization, the brilliant narrative, the detailed historical setting, but it’s not just a ‘pretty’ book: it’s a thinker. War and cruelty are often the product of momentum – single voices being silenced when the masses are too sheepish to speak up as a whole. The question posed throughout this book is what is right – what we feel within, or what the masses are doing? Obviously the majority of us have pretty strong feelings in terms of the answer to that question, especially given the horrors of an event like WW2, but the book still makes you ponder it in far greater and more vivid detail than you’d probably ever thought imaginable.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty – $31
Perfect For: Your gossipy sister.
Reminded Me Of: A more eloquent, suburban Candace Bushnell and a more scintillating Emily Giffin, with a splash of Grace Metalious for good measure.
What’s Up?: After blowing up the ‘chick lit’ world last year with the intelligent, engrossing The Husband’s Secret, everyone waited to see if Liane Moriarty could strike gold twice. The short answer is, yes! In her latest novel, Moriarty transports you to a cliquey beachy community, where the Mean Girls aren’t donning mini skirts and ruling court in high school, but wearing J Crew and picking up their kids from school. AKA: Parents behaving badly. With a vibrant and diverse cast of characters, it’s about all the secrets and lies we tell ourselves and each other just to kinda sorta get through the day. But Big Little Lies isn’t just a fluffy character study either. There is indeed a mystery at the heart of the book – one that is not only a whodunnit, but a whodunnitto? (i.e. the victim is as mysterious as the crime). It also touches on some of the hot button topics for today’s women (and moms) – like bullying and domestic abuse – elevating this would-be gossipy, Desperate Housewives-esque tale into a real honest, snarky, heartfelt, riveting portrait of what happens behind closed doors and the ways it manifests itself in the public eye. A great pick for anyone interested in contemporary fiction.

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell – $34
Perfect For: Anyone that appreciates Ambitious with a Capital A storytelling.
Reminded Me Of: David Mitchell’s super famous book, Cloud Atlas.
What’s Up?: Are you familiar with the TV show American Horror Story? The crossover may be obtuse, but let me explain. David Mitchell is the author of such ambitious works as his nesting doll of a book, Cloud Atlas. Recently, he has revealed that all of his books – while still enjoyable as standalone tomes – are actually part of one ‘uber’ book, or at least the same realm which he’s created. Thus the AHS comparison – each series is technically standalone, but they are all part of the same universe, thus delighting readers with plenty o’ Easter Eggs. So if you’re a David Mitchell fan to begin with, then yes, you’ll want to read this one too. And if you just want to read a really good, complex book, well then, you’ll also enjoy. Like with Cloud Atlas, the book consists of six novellas told from six different perspectives. However, the big difference here is those stories span just some sixty years (unlike the centuries found in Cloud Atlas) and are all connected by one major thread: the life of a girl named Holly Skyes. It’s a much more straightforward, surprisingly linear approach for Mitchell to take, as you dip in and out of Holly’s life from when she’s 15 and nursing a broken heart to when she’s in her 70s and living in a post-apocalyptic world. Of course, this being a David Mitchell book, things aren’t quite that straightforward. There some mystical threads running throughout the stories, including a fantastical war that plays at the edges of Holly’s otherwise ‘magical realism’ story. The great thing about a Mitchell book is that the sum is greater than the parts: even if every novella isn’t your cup of tea, you’ll certainly walk away appreciative of this author’s deft hand at spinning an intriguing yarn.

All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews – $29.95
Perfect For: Your closest friend in book club.
Reminded Me Of: D
What’s Up?: A book about suicide? You may think, how depressing and put it back on the shelf. But anyone that’s read Canadian author Miriam Toews’ precisely written yet accessible novels will know there are many, many sides to any story and many ways to tell it. That’s not say All My Puny Sorrows is exactly a yukfest. It’s inspired by Toews’ own family history, wherein her sister Marjorie committed suicide, much like the character of Elf (a successful pianist) wants to within these pages. Standing in direct opposition to Elf’s wishes is her sister Yoli, the proxy Toews, whose fictional life isn’t particularly rosy either. Yoli watches in frustration and helplessness as her sister marches toward the dark at the end of the tunnel, wondering if there’s anything she can possibly to do help her loved one, if she can be ‘healed’, if there is a way to bring her back toward the light. It may sound bleak, but alas, the book is shockingly gripping, moving, raw, and like all of Toews work, imminently readable, despite the subject at hand. The novel has already won acclaim by being shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and nabbing accolades in the form of the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. As always, I’m an extra big fan of promoting Canadian authors – so if you’ve never dived into one of Toews books, trust me, you will be captivated.

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami – $29.95
Perfect For: Your brainy hipster cousin in college.
Reminded Me Of: There can be no real answer to this than it reminded me of other Murakami fare.
What’s Up?: In a lot of ways, I feel like reading a Murakami book is a must-have for any person that calls themselves a ‘reader’. His voice is singular – a weird blend of nonsense and pathos and intrigue and transcendence that’s reminiscent of the best episodes of Lost, where you’re able to suspend the need for an explanation because you’re just enjoying his work so much. I’ve already read two Murakamis and I was eagerly anticipating his latest. If you ARE familiar with the Japanese author’s work, then I can share this: it’s a bit of a departure from his other stories, really, in terms of how straightforward it is. There is a big of magical trickery in the air (hint: there’s a similar concept to IQ84 at play) but really, it’s the story of a boy who was friends with four children once upon a time, all of whom has a reference to a colour in their name – except for Tsukuru. One day, out of seemingly nowhere, they stop being friends with him. Sixteen years later, Tsukuru’s girlfriend convinces him to figure out what went down and why he’s such a lonely dude in his adulthood. While it may not be the most uplifting of reads (and are Murakami’s books ever?) but it IS an interesting study on loneliness, longing and the moments (big and small) that shape who we become.

That wraps up my Holiday Reads posts for the year – and SHOULD wrap up your book-buying needs for this holiday season. Once again, I’m giving away copies of every single book featured in this post, as part of a prize package valued at over $375! Enter to win some of 2014’s most talked about fiction by following the steps below:

1) First and foremost: you must be a subscriber to the Canadian Gift Guide to enter this giveaway – I promise, you’ll love it! Just find the ‘Gift of Gab’ box on the righthand side of this page and either hit Follow or enter your email address. Once you’ve done that, leave a comment on this post by December 24, 2014, telling me which of these titles you’re most interested in reading. You can pick as many as you like!

2) Entries are limited to one per person / per email address / per household (or more if you score bonus entries). A random draw will be conducted on or around December 26, 2014 to select the winner(s), who will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen in their place.

3) Entries are limited to Canadians that have reached the age of majority in their province. Quebec is not eligible for this promotion.

4) Bonus Entry: Follow the super awesome publishers of these engrossing books on Twitter, and send then send out as many as 12 Tweets (one per book) that tags each publisher and the author of the book (if they have a Twitter account), as well as links back to this post. Then post each of your Tweets into a separate comment below. As a handy cheat sheet, I’ve highlighted the publishers below, including what titles they released, and their Twitter handles.

Penguin – Big Little Lies

Raincoast Books – Friendship, Landline

Random House of Canada – Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki, Adult Onset, The Paying Guests, Shopaholic To The Stars, Bone Clocks, Leaving Time, All My Puny Sorrows

Simon & Schuster – We Are Not Ourselves, All The Light We Cannot See