• Home
  • About
  • Books
  • Events
  • News
  • Contact
  • More
    • Home
    • About
    • Books
    • Events
    • News
    • Contact
  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • Events
  • News
  • Contact

Leslie Shimotakahara

Leslie ShimotakaharaLeslie ShimotakaharaLeslie Shimotakahara

News

Grateful for this insightful review of Sisters of the Spruce in this issue of Foreword Reviews. 

Had a lovely time being on the BookTube show "Shawn Breathes Books" to discuss Sisters of the Spruce, my writing and research process, as well as a few books on my nightstand (my interview begins about 4 minutes into the episode).

Sisters of the Spruce is on the 49th Shelf's "Fabulous Fiction: Our 2024 Books of the Year." I'm also happy to announce that it will soon be released as an audiobook from Tantor Media.

Sisters of the Spruce has  been added to British Columbia's Books for Schools list, recommended for grade 12. I hope that teachers interested in BIPOC historical fiction will consider teaching it.

Delighted to receive the Japanese edition of my memoir, The Reading List. It's a nice surprise that this memoir, first published in English in 2012, will have an afterlife in Japan!

It was a pleasure to do this interview about Sisters of the Spruce on  CBC's The Next Chapter.  And thanks for the shout-out about my novel in this CBC article too. In this separate clip, I also enjoyed chatting about why Jane Eyre remains a influential novel for me.

I had fun being interviewed about  my latest novel on GET LIT podcast. Since this is my third time being a guest on this podcast, it feels like a conversation with a friend. 

Here's my interview on Canada Reads American Style podcast about Sisters of the Spruce and its inspiration in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, among other sources. 

Enjoyed being interviewed by Chris Walker on CBC's Daybreak South about Sisters of the Spruce! (My interview starts at 59:30 on the episode on May 23, 2024).

A lovely review of Sisters of the Spruce in Cha: An Asian Literary Journal.  

From a reviewer intimately familiar with the landscape of Haida Gwaii, a thoughtful review of Sisters of the Spruce in this issue of Literary Review of Canada.

I'm excited that my fourth novel, The Breakwater,  has been acquired by Cormorant Books for publication in spring 2026. 

Some nice ink about Sisters of the Spruce in Historical Novel Society. 

Had fun chatting with BOOKSPO podcast about the sources of inspiration for Sisters of the Spruce, ranging from my grandmother's tales of growing up in Haida Gwaii to Charlotte Bronte's novel Jane Eyre. 

My interview with Nikkei Voice about how my ancestral history influenced Sisters of the Spruce, in "Literary Passageways to Places in the Past." 

Sisters of the Spruce is on Quill & Quire's "2024 Spring Preview: Fiction" and the 49th Shelf's "Most Anticipated: Our 2024 Spring Fiction Preview."

In this short essay called "History's Allure," I discuss the inspiration behind Sisters of the Spruce and share reflections on a selection of my favourite historical novels.

Bustle has chosen After the Bloom as its #1 choice in "50 Books To Read With Your Book Club." It is also featured in Book Riot's summer 2025 reading list on "WWII Japanese American Concentration Camps in Historical Fiction." 

Happy to receive this review of Red Oblivion in Cha: An Asian Literary Journal. 

Some nice ink about Red Oblivion in Kirkus Reviews. 

My short story "The Breakwater" is anthologized in Changing the Face of Canadian Literature, and my very short story "Masset Inlet, 1922" is included in the anthology This Will Only Take Minute.  

Some pieces I wrote for Open Book as their writer in residence.

A warm review of Red Oblivion's audiobook in AudioFile.  A sample of the audiobook can be listened to here.

World Literature Today invited me to write their "What to Read Now" column.

A lovely review of Red Oblivion in Maria Meindl's "In for the Duration" in the 49th Shelf.   

Thrilled to receive this starred review of After the Bloom in Booklist. 

An insightful review of After the Bloom in the National Post. 

After the Bloom is on  CBC Books' recommended five books about the Japanese Canadian Internment.  

Thanks Foreword Reviews for this review of After the Bloom.  

A perceptive review in the Ottawa Review of Books.


Powered by

This website uses cookies.

We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.

Accept