8 books to read if you loved Jennie's Boy by Wayne Johnston
Fans of the humorous memoir will love these other Canadian titles
Thriller writer Linwood Barclay championed Jennie's Boy by Wayne Johnston on Canada Reads 2025.
Jennie's Boy recounts a six-month period in Wayne Johnston's chaotic childhood, much of which was spent as a frail and sickly boy. While too ill to attend school, he spent time with his funny and eccentric grandmother, Lucy, and picked up some important life lessons along the way.
Here are eight Canadian books to read if you loved Jennie's Boy.
Son of a Critch by Mark Critch
This Hour has 22 Minutes star Mark Critch says being from Newfoundland and Labrador has greatly informed his life and work — an influence he explores in his new memoir, Son of a Critch. The book touches on Critch's 1980's childhood in Newfoundland, including an unfortunate moment when he got locked out of school on a fourth-floor window ledge... or that other time, when he faked an asthma attack to avoid being arrested by military police.
Mark Critch is a comedian, actor and writer from St. John's. He is best known for his work on CBC sketch comedy show This Hour Has 22 Minutes. His memoir, Son of a Critch, was shortlisted for 2019 Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour and made into a CBC TV series.
Hollow Bamboo by William Ping
Taking place in Newfoundland, Hollow Bamboo is a story about two William Pings — a millennial in the present with a realization that he needs to learn more about his Chinese heritage — and his grandfather in the past who came to Newfoundland from China to work in a laundry in 1931.
William Ping is a journalist at CBC St. John's and the writer of Hollow Bamboo, which was a finalist for the 2023 Amazon First Novel Award and longlisted for the Dublin Literary Award. He completed his Master of Arts at Memorial University and received the English department's Award for Thesis Excellence for the book he wrote for his master's degree.
Pluck by Donna Morrissey
In the memoir Pluck, writer Donna Morrissey recounts her life from being a grocery clerk to oil fields, from marriage and divorce to working in a fish-processing plant to support herself and her two young children. She layers her account of her life with stories of people who came before her, such as iron-willed mothers, daughters, wives, sisters, teachers and mentors. Pluck shows that even when you're unravelling, you can spin the yarns that will save you.
Morrissey is the author of six novels, including Kit's Law, The Fortunate Brother, The Deception of Livvy Higgs and Sylvanus Now. She has also written the children's book Cross Katie Kross, which was illustrated by her daughter, Brigitte Morrissey. Born and raised in Newfoundland, Morissey now lives in Halifax.
Baltimore's Mansion by Wayne Johnston
In Baltimore's Mansion, Wayne Johnston tells the story of the Johnstons of Ferryland, N.L., a Catholic colony founded by Lord Baltimore in the 1620s. Shedding light on three generations of fathers and sons, Johnston paints a vivid portrait of stubborn and compelling family members.
Johnston is a writer, born and raised in Goulds, N.L. His novels include The Divine Ryans, A World Elsewhere, The Custodian of Paradise, The Navigator of New York and The Colony of Unrequited Dreams. His 1999 memoir, Baltimore's Mansion, won the RBC Taylor Prize. The Colony of Unrequited Dreams was shortlisted for the Giller Prize and was a 2003 Canada Reads finalist, when it was championed by former prime minister Justin Trudeau.
The Woo-Woo by Lindsay Wong
The Woo-Woo is a dark, witty and touching memoir by Vancouver-based writer Lindsay Wong, who gives an honest account of the impact of mental illness on her family. Wong delivers a raw and emotional look at whispered secrets, dysfunctional relationships — and how her grandmother, mother, aunt and even herself initially blamed the mythical "woo-woo," Chinese spirits that plague the living, for their mental health issues.
Wong is a Vancouver-based author. She holds a BFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia and an MFA in literary nonfiction from Columbia University. The Woo-Woo was a finalist for the 2018 Hilary West Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction and was defended by Joe Zee on Canada Reads 2019. CBC Books named Wong a writer to watch in 2019. She's also the author of the short story collection Tell Me Pleasant Things About Immortality and My Summer of Love and Misfortune.
My Mother's Daughter by Perdita Felicien
Perdita Felicien's mom Catherine was a poor young woman in St. Lucia when she was given a seemingly random, but ultimately life-changing, opportunity: to come to Canada with a wealthy white family and become their nanny. But when she gets to Canada, life is tougher than she expected, as she endures poverty, domestic violence and even homelessness. However, she still encouraged and supported her youngest daughter's athletic dreams. Felicien would go on to be a world-class hurdler and one of Canada's greatest track athletes. My Mother's Daughter is the story of these two women, and how their love for each other got them through difficult times and changed their lives.
Perdita Felicien was a 10-time national champion, a two-time Olympian and became the first Canadian woman to win a gold medal at a world championships. She now works as a sports broadcaster and is part of CBC's team covering the Olympics. My Mother's Daughter is her first book.
No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod
In No Great Mischief, a man named Alexander MacDonald recounts the tales of his Nova Scotia clan: loggers, miners, drinkers and adventurers. A story of family, loyalty and exile, No Great Mischief explores the strength of blood ties and the power of a place.
Alistair MacLeod was a writer and academic, renowned for his work in short fiction. His books include The Lost Salt Gift of Blood, Birds Bring Forth the Sun and Other Stories, Island and Remembrance. He was the first Canadian to receive the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and won the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. Born in Saskatchewan, his family moved to Nova Scotia when he was 10. He died in 2014.
Annabel by Kathleen Winter
Annabel is the haunting story of a mysterious child born in 1968 in a village in the stark but beautiful region of coastal Labrador. Wayne is raised as a boy, but is actually an intersex child. As he comes of age in the hyper-masculine hunting culture of his father, his shadow-self — a girl he thinks of as "Annabel" — becomes irrepressible, forcing the character to confront this duality.
Kathleen Winter a Montreal-based writer of books inlcuding Boundless, Lost in September and Annabel. In 2010, Annabel was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize and the Governor General's Literary Award for fiction. The following year, it was shortlisted for the Orange Prize and won the Thomas Head Raddall Award. Annabel was defended by Sarah Gadon on Canada Reads 2014.
