The Next Chapter with Antonio Michael Downing

Some books change your mind. Others simply reinforce what you already know. The Next Chapter's columnist Nathan Maharaj joins the show to talk about two books that challenged his assumptions and altered his perspective. Nathan is a lifelong bookseller and the director of content marketing at Rakuten Kobo. He'll discuss why challenging your beliefs is important and how it can lead to a broader worldview. Plus, Toronto artist Mah Moud stops by to talk about a mysterious book from his parents bookshelf, and how the impact of a good novel can last for generations.

Books discussed on this week's show include:
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
How Great Things Happen by George Newman

Liked this conversation? Keep listening:
Can reading be the first step to making real change?
What is the greatest Canadian novel of all time?

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A few years ago Marissa Stapley heard a radio story about an unclaimed winning lottery ticket, which planted the seed for her novel, Lucky. Since then, the book has become a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick and was recently adapted into a star-studded Apple TV series starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Drew Starkey. Lucky is the novel that changed Marissa Stapley’s life, and today she joins the show to talk about it, her time in Hollywood and where she plans to take her beloved character next. Marissa will also share a few titles she’s reading this Summer. Plus, Nick Frosst, lead singer from the Toronto band Good Kid stops by to recommend a book that has changed his perspective on human pre-history.

Books discussed on this week's show include:
Lucky by Marissa Stapley
Definitely Thriving by Kerry Clare
Strangers in the Villa by Robyn Harding
The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber and David Wengrow

Liked this conversation? Keep listening:
The book that inspired Carley Fortune's writing career
Why does Nita Prose call herself an accidental writer?

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Is there one meal that reminds you of home? A dish that brings back childhood memories? For CBC Books producer Talia Kliot, it’s a shortbread, sour cream and walnut cake that makes an appearance at her family’s special milestones. Talia is obsessed with the way that food helps us tell stories and even made a radio documentary about it, where she speaks to writers, an academic and a video game designer. She joined Antonio Michael Downing on The Next Chapter to share what made her hungry for these stories in the first place … and why food is the best way to connect.

Books discussed on this week's show include:
Restaurant Kid by Rachel Phan
How to Share an Egg by Bonny Reichert
Poutine by Justin Giovannetti Lamothe

Liked this conversation? Keep listening:
The books that fire up chef Michael Smith
Is food the closest thing to teleportation?

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Set in late-20th-century Cairo, Éric Chacour's novel What I know About You is a heartbreaking story of an impossible love and a family fractured by secrets and expectations. It was selected for One eRead Canada’s live digital book club, which brings libraries and readers together. Originally written in French, the book's translator, Pablo Strauss joins the discussion to share what it was like recreating the world in English for a conversation hosted by the Mississauga Library.

Books discussed on this week's show include:
What I Know About You by Éric Chacour

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Did you know that Ernest Hemingway wrote for the Toronto Star? The iconic cigar-smoking, bull-fighting American writer spent two separate stints living in Canada. It was partly while living and working in Toronto that he developed his stripped-down, sparse writing style. Author and Hemingway expert Terry Fallis reflects on the writer's larger than life reputation and his time spent in Toronto ahead of the upcoming International Hemingway Society Conference. Plus, CBC producer Christine Pagulayan talks about the latest trend to hit the world of romance.

Books discussed on this week's show include:
A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
The Stand-In by Lily Chu
The Marionette by Terry Fallis

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