Current Events
January
Ludovic Viger Book Signing
Perfect Books
Come chat with Ludovic Viger about his book, The Great Candian Reset: Why Co-Ops Are the Right Choice For Canada’s Future, from 1-3pm!
In this wide-ranging book, Ludovic Viger explores how we can thrive when the economy slows down and even shrinks. We are facing a period of degrowth because the time of Cheap Oil, which has fueled our economic growth since the Industrial Revolution, is over. What’s more, our current high-consumption lifestyle is making energy demands that will soon outstrip the capacity of the environment to renew itself. It’s an ecological overshoot, the hallmark of many declining civilizations throughout history. So what are we supposed to do now? We’ll need to consume less and conserve more. But it is possible to thrive in this world, and there’s a proven model that shows how: co-ops. They’ve been successful in many spheres of life, from agriculture to housing to finance, and they’ve succeeded even in bad times. This is a book that provides a workable solution to the problems of our time, solutions that can be embraced by thinkers and policy-makers across the political spectrum.
While living in Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Shanghai, LUDOVIC VIGER built a successful export/import agency to support Canadian enterprises with interests in China. Then he returned to Canada in 2010 and developed his keen interest in cooperatives and permaculture. His profound understanding of world politics, combined with his environmental and social views, prompted him to call into question our current national policies in the face of global concerns. He now lives in Ottawa, where he is a strong advocate for sustainable and ethical business models.
Book Signing with Jagjeet Sharma
Perfect Books
Local author Jagjeet Sharma will be at Perfect Books signing copies of her latest works from 1-3pm. Stop by for a meet and great and to get your books signed!
Book Launch for Kagiso Lesego Molope
Library and Archives Canada
Join Ottawa Writers Festival for the launch of Kagiso Lesego Molope's We Inherit the Fire, a gorgeously rendered, unflinching portrait of the fractured relationship between a mother and her daughter set against the tumultuous end of apartheid in South Africa.
KAGISO LEGESO MOLOPE is an Indigenous novelist and playwright of the San people of Southern Africa. She is the author of four other novels: Dancing in the Dust, which was on the IBBY Honour List for 2006; The Mending Season; Such a Lonely, Lovely Road; and This Book Betrays My Brother. She has been nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award four times. She is the winner of the 2014 Percy FitzPatrick Award, the 2019 Ottawa Book Award for Fiction, and the 2019 inaugural Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award. Across Southern Africa and in parts of Europe, her works are read in schools in several languages. She wrote the play Maya Angelou: Black Woman Rising, which was staged for five years at Oslo’s Nordic Black Theatre. She lives on the unceded and unsurrendered Anishinaabe Algonquin territory.
With book sales by Perfect Books.
Reserve your free tickets at writersfestival.org
Carter Vance Book Signing
Perfect Books
Join Carter Vance as he signs copies of his novel Smaller Animals!
Adam Brinkert was raised a world apart from the lights of Ottawa and the din of politics, in a small city in Northern Ontario. Pursuing justice and a way to make things better for the people he grew up with, he became an assistant to a Member of Parliament, living his youth in the offices and hallways of power. But, as he grows towards his 30s, he begins to doubt what it was all for; were his experiences all merely for self-aggrandizement and not the greater good? Twists of fate and slights of political hand will test Adam’s belief in himself, and what he believes is right, while he navigates the landscape of a country, and a world, that is changing rapidly. All the while, he struggles to define his relationships with the people around him, including his erstwhile friend-cum-political rival Truss and his ex-girlfriend and co-worker Kathleen. Adam’s journey will take him across the county and back to his home, searching for a spark to guide him where he truly belongs.
February
Book Signing with Ernie Bies
Perfect Books
Join local Barrhaven author Ernie Bies for an afternoon of chatting and book signing as you browse, from 1:00-3:00pm!
An Afternoon with Gillian Deacon
Motel Chelsea, 1418 Route 105, Chelsea QC
*SOLD OUT* Join Wakefield Writer’s Festival on February 1 for a powerful and engaging literary afternoon with Gillian Deacon (journalist, television and radio host and bestselling author) as she launches her brand-new book, A Love Affair with the Unknown, Leaning Into the Uncertainty of Modern Life.
In this deeply personal and beautifully crafted work, Deacon reflects on resilience, reinvention, and the unpredictable forces that shape our lives. Her sharp insight, warmth, and candour promise a literary afternoon that is both moving and illuminating. Our host will be Lucy van Oldenbarneveld, award-winning journalist, television host, reporter, and communications specialist, known for her empathy, humour, and ability to bring out the heart of a story. Together, these two exceptional women will explore the themes behind Deacon’s new book, her creative path, and the search for meaning in the face of uncertainty. Expect an intimate, inspiring exchange that lingers long after the event ends.
With book sales by Perfect Books.
Details here: https://www.writersfete.com/
The Inaugural Father Jim Bleackley OMI Lecture on Indigenous Justice with Guest Speaker Niigaan Sinclair
St.Joseph's Church, 174 Wilbrod St
Join us at the free event on the subject of Indigenous Justice with guest speaker Niigaan Sinclair, co-sponsored by St.Joseph's Parish and Kateri Native Ministry of Ottawa.
Niigaan Sinclair is an Anishinaabe writer, editor, professor, and activist based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He frequently speaks on Indigenous issues on CTV, CBC and APTN. His book Wînipêk: Visions of Canada from an Indigenous Centre won the Governor General’s Award for English-language non-fiction at the 2024 Governor General’s Awards.
Perfect Books will be selling copies of Niigaan Sinclair's book as well as books by other Indigenous authors.
For more information, contact St.Joe's: 613-233-4095 x 251, or info@st-josephs.ca