In this issue
- Letter from CELA’s Executive Director
- Awards Update
- It's time for the Hackmatack and Forest of Reading programs!
- Welcome to two new CELA member libraries
- Converting former CD users to digital magazines
- Canada Reads April 13 - 16
- First annual Accessible Reading Symposium
- Death of Len Deighton
- One eRead Canada
- Accessible Reading Canada Alexa skill issue affecting Android users
- Come see us at the Conference!
- Reading for Truth and Reconciliation
- Reading in the news
- Webinars for you
- Featured title for adults: Jesusland: Stories from the upside down world of Christian pop culture
- Top five books
- Featured title for kids: Ramin Abbas has major questions
- Top five for kids
- Top five for teens
- Service tip: Awards page
- Holiday hours in April
- Stay connected!
Letter from CELA’s Executive Director
This month we are celebrating so many things at CELA. The Accessible Reading Symposium which happened March 11and 12th was a great success and we are so pleased with the turnout and the feedback. The Symposium was collaboratively organized by CELA, NNELS and BAnQ, and I would like to say a special thanks to the steering committee that organized the event, including Lindsay Tyler and Jessica Desormeaux from CELA. We also are so grateful for all the speakers whose contributions were essential to the success of the symposium. If you weren’t able to join the event live, recordings will be made available in the coming weeks.
We also wanted to thank all those who filled in our strategic planning survey, participated in focus groups and offered their feedback. We will be working with the data collected and our team to draft the new strategic plan and we are looking forward to sharing more this summer.
We are pleased that Bill C-15 has received royal ascent and that the protections for both the Free Literature for the Blind, and the reduced rate for library materials were preserved. These Canada Post programs are an essential component of services like CELA's which allows us to get physical materials to people in Canada with print disabilities. Our thanks go out to everyone who participated in our advocacy efforts and to Minister Lightbound for maintaining these provisions.
Lastly, we are excited for Canada Reads which takes place April 13-16, and the One eRead Canada which kicks off April 1. We love any chance to talk about books, especially great Canadian books. Learn more about these programs in this month’s newsletter.
Happy Reading!
Laurie Davidson, Executive Director
Awards update
These awards celebrate more than 150 LGBTQ writers across 26 categories spanning a number of genres, lived identities, and experiences. You can find accessible versions of nominated titles in our collection. Finalists will be announced on Friday, June 12.
The Griffin Poetry Prize has also announced its longlist. Celebrate poetry Month in April by reading the titles available in our collection.
It's time for the Hackmatack and Forest of Reading programs!
The deadlines are approaching for the Hackmatack and Forest of Reading kids and young adult programs. These reader's choice programs let the kids choose the winning titles by reading a selection of titles and voting on their favourites.
Votes are due for the Hackmatack program by April 30. There's still time to read the books!
And the Forest of Reading deadline is also April 30 with the winners announced in mid May.
Read the Forest of Reading titles in accessible formats.
Welcome to two new CELA member libraries
We are delighted to welcome Cranbrook and Penticton public libraries as CELA member libraries. People with print disabilities in these BC communities can now access CELA through their local libraries.
Converting former CD users to digital magazines
Beginning in early April we will be completing the final transitions of former CD users to digital services. As part of this process, we will switch users who were receiving CD magazines to receive the DAISY audio magazines subscription through Direct to Player.
This will apply only to users who are not already receiving magazines in Direct to Player format. We expect this process to take about 2 weeks.
The magazines include Canadian Geographic, Chatelaine, Macleans, Good times and What’s New, a CELA publication which highlights new audiobooks in our collection.
Our goal is to make the move to digital services easier, and DAISY audio magazines are a unique and popular service.
Users may subscribe to CELA magazines, or cancel any CELA magazine subscription at any time by logging in and visiting My Account. Contact Centre is available to assist with magazine subscriptions as well.
If you are new to digital magazines you can learn more through the following resources
Recording: How to read CELA audiobooks and magazines: Transitioning from reading on CDs to other devices (YouTube)
Transcript: How to read CELA audiobooks and magazines: Transitioning from reading on CDs to other devices (Word document)
On our Magazines page you can find links to all the magazines we offer and resources about the various ways to read them.
Canada Reads April 13 - 16
It's almost time!
Canada Reads takes place April 13 to 16, and again will be hosted by Ali Hassan.
The show’s theme this year is one book to build bridges and features these Canadian books.
- A Minor Chorus by Billy-Ray Belcourt
- Searching for Terry Punchout by Tyler Hellard
- The Cure for Drowning by Loghan Paylor
- Foe by Iain Reid
- It's Different This Time by Joss Richard
There are plenty of ways to listen or watch the debates.
ONLINE: CBC Books will livestream the debates at 10:05 a.m. ET on CBC Books, YouTube and CBC Gem.
ON RADIO: Canada Reads will air on CBC Radio at 10:05 a.m. in the Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific time zones. It will air at 11:05 a.m. in Nunavut, the Maritimes, 1:05 p.m. in Labrador and at 1:35 p.m. in Newfoundland.
ON TV: CBC TV will broadcast Canada Reads at 1 p.m. in the Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific time zones. It will air at 2 p.m. in the Atlantic time zone and at 2:30 p.m in the Newfoundland time zone.
PODCAST: The episode will be posted each day after the live airing. You can download the episodes on the podcast app of your choice.
Check in with your local library to see if there are watch parties or events. Some are listed here.
First annual Accessible Reading Symposium
We are so pleased that the Accessible Reading Symposium was a success according to the feedback we are receiving from participants. The collaboration between NNELS, BAnQ and CELA took place March 11 and 12. The program brought together readers, authors, publishers, and many experts from the accessible reading sector to share information.
The sessions were recorded and in the coming weeks you can find the recordings and transcripts of both the French and English sessions on our YouTube channel. And we will have an upcoming blog with more information.
We want to thank everyone involved in organizing and presenting at the symposium and we are looking forward to planning the second annual symposium next year.
Death of Len Deighton
British author, Len Deighton has died at the age of 97.
While he wrote 5 cookbooks, he was best known for his spy novels and was often compared to John le Carré. Many of Deighton's books were adapted for film and radio, including The IPCRESS File which was made into a movie starring Michael Caine.
We offer our condolences to his family, friends and fans.
Reading Len Deighton's books in our collection.
Read the BBC obituary of Len Deighton.
One eRead Canada
One eRead/Un Livrel Canada is a bilingual digital book club connecting readers and libraries from across Canada.
The selected book for 2026 is What I Know About You by Éric Chacour, originally published in French as Ce que je sais de toi and translated by Pablo Strauss.
The multi-award winning story is a heartbreaking tale of a family and an impossible love, torn apart by secrets and traditions in late-twentieth-century Cairo.
In a tight-knit Levantine Christian family in 1960s Cairo, Tarek's entire life is written in advance. He'll be a doctor like his father, marry, and have children. Under the watchful eye of the family's strong women, he starts to do just that until a patient's son, Ali, enters his life and turns it upside down.
One eRead Canada will livestream two events. Antonio Michael Downing, host of The Next Chapter will be in conversation with Éric Chacour and Pablo Strauss on April 30 at 7 pm ET.
Éric will be in conversation with Caroline Moon on April 29th at 7 pm ET in French.
Learn more at the One eRead website.
Accessible Reading Canada Alexa skill issue affecting Android users
We have learned about a problem affecting Android users who use the Alexa app to link their CELA and Amazon accounts in order to use CELA’s Accessible Reading Canada skill. These users are getting a message that says “Unable to link your account at this time”. We are working on a solution to this issue. The account linking works on iOS devices.
In the meantime, we suggest Android users enable the skill and link their account on the Amazon website. Visit our page Instructions on manually enabling the skill via the Amazon website or contact us at 1-855-655-2273 for help.
Come see us at the Conference!
We are delighted to be returning to ASET (Association for Special Education Technology) Conference this year. On Friday, April 17 Cora Payne, our Outreach Manager will be presenting "We have the device, but now what? A guide to empower readers through choice and access" which will explore how educators can connect students with customizable reading formats through CELA and local public libraries.
Participants will gain practical strategies to support learners with disabilities and fosters independent, lifelong literacy.
And if you are an educator or other supporting professional attending the Ontario IDA Literacy & Learning Educator Conference on April 11 or 12, please stop by our booth to say hi and meet our Outreach Team. We'd love to hear what you are doing in your classrooms, and learn how we can support you.
Reading for Truth and Reconciliation
Treaties cover much of Canada. Some were established thousands of years ago, with Land and animals, and others date back to the time when Europeans first arrived in North America. These agreements make it possible for all of us to live, work, play, and profit on these Lands.
Additionally, treaties have profoundly shaped the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. In Talk Treaty to Me Crystal Gail Fraser and Sara Komarnisky untangle the complexities of treaties and set forth a path to a greater understanding of all our roles, rights, and responsibilities. With a quick-reference timeline, maps, and black-and-white photographs throughout, Talk Treaty to Me concludes with a call to action and specific, tangible steps that all of us can take every day to support truth and reconciliation.
Talk treaty to me: Understanding the basics of treaties and land in Canada by Crystal Gail Fraser
Reading in the News
What happens when a popular book narrator catches a cold? Well it could be disastrous and throw off a lot of schedules!
NPR profiles Anthony Palmini, the very popular narrator of some of romantasy's most popular audio books, including some from the series "A Court of Thorns and Roses" by Sarah J. Maas. With 60 more books to narrate before the end of summer, he's hoping there are no more colds coming his way.
Webinars for you
We host a series of webinars on Zoom to help users access CELA services, to stay up to date on new technologies and to learn more about accessible reading. Most of our webinars are recorded.
On the Webinars for you page, you will find upcoming webinars. On that same page you will find links to other CELA video resources available on our YouTube channel.
Starting with CELA: finding and getting books and magazines
Have you recently registered for CELA or would you like a refresher on how to find and read books and magazines? Or are you a designate who assists a CELA user with a print disability manage their library service? We’re pleased to share how you can use the 1.5 million titles available to you in this 60-minute webinar.
- What CELA offers: books & more!
- What kind of devices do you need to listen to CELA's books and magazines
- Discover how to access a book or magazine using CELA's site: log in, search and choose a book
- Find tutorials and videos for more help
To register for the online Zoom webinar please select the link below and fill in the registration form. To attend by phone, please call the Contact Centre at 1-855-655-2273.
Tuesday April 7 7:00-8:00pm EDT
Accessing CELA using a Victor Stratus DAISY Player
Do you own a Humanware Victor Reader Stratus 4M or the new Stratus 2? Were you receiving books on CD and want to continue using the Stratus for CELA content? Are you considering getting the Stratus to access reading materials from CELA? Join us for this hour-long webinar about how this versatile device lets you read CELA’s books and magazines in audio and e-text formats. This webinar is for new Victor Stratus users or those interested in learning new ways of using this player. By attending this webinar, you will learn about:
- General features of the Victor Stratus, and what’s new with the latest model
- Configuring the device for use with CELA
- How to navigate and manage your Direct to Player bookshelf
- Reading a title and playback options
- How to find help in using the Victor Stratus with CELA
To register for the online Zoom webinar please select the link below and fill in the registration form. To attend by phone, please call the Contact Centre at 1-855-655-2273.
Tuesday May 12 2:00-3:00pm EDT
Getting Started with Accessible Reading Canada: Listen to CELA Audiobooks with Alexa
Join us for a live webinar introducing Accessible Reading Canada, a new way for CELA patrons to enjoy CELA audiobooks using Alexa-enabled smart speakers. This 60-minute session will walk you through how to use voice commands to search, browse, and listen to audiobooks from your CELA Direct to Player Bookshelf using the Accessible Reading Canada Alexa skill.
This webinar will cover:
- What Alexa-enabled smart speakers are and how they work
- How to set up and use the Accessible Reading Canada skill
- How to use voice commands for browsing and reading
- Where to find help guides and additional support
After the presentation, there will be a Q&A session to ask additional questions. This session will be recorded.
To register for the online Zoom webinar please select the link below and fill in the registration form. To attend by phone, please call the Contact Centre at 1-855-655-2273.
Featured title for adults: Jesusland: Stories from the upside down world of Christian pop culture
In 1999, after three years of secular living in Eastern Europe, Joelle Kidd moved back to Canada and was enrolled in an evangelical Christian school. Immediately, she found herself in a strange world of upbeat Christan pop music, purity education, and desperately trendy Bible redesigns, trying to make sense of this unfamiliar preteen cultural landscape.
In Jesusland, Joelle writes about the Christian pop culture that she was suddenly immersed in, from perky girl bands to modest styling tips, and draws connections between this evangelical subculture and the mainstream, a tense yet reciprocal relationship that both disavows the secular while employing its media markers. But none of this was just about catchy songs; every abstinence quiz in a teen magazine was laying the foundation for what would become a conservative Christian movement that threatens women's healthcare, attacks queer and trans rights, and drives present-day political division. Through nine incisive, honest, and emotional essays, Jesusland exposes the pop cultural machinations of evangelicalism, while giving voice to aughts-era Christian children and teens who are now adults looking back at their time measuring the length of their skirts, and asking each other if their celebrity crush was Christian enough. With care and generosity, Jesusland shows us how the conservative evangelical movement became the global power it is today by exploring the pop culture that both reflected and shaped an entire generation of young people.
Top five books
Most popular with our readers last month:
- Villain Hitting for Vicious Little Nobodies by Lindsay Wong, Multi-cultural folklore fiction
- Black Bear: A Story of Siblinghood and Survival by Trina Moyles, Family and relationships
- Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, Science fiction
- Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden, Suspense and thrillers
- Fancy Gap: A Novel by Zak Jones, Serious and literary fiction
Featured title for kids: Ramin Abbas has major questions
An intensely brave, beautifully honest, and wryly funny story about a gay Muslim teen who has to choose between being true to himself or his faith—and his realization that maybe they aren't as separate as he thought. Ramin Abbas has spent his whole life obeying his parents, his Imam, and, of course, Allah — no questions asked. But when he starts crushing on the ridiculously handsome captain of the soccer team, so many things he'd always been so sure about are becoming questions: 1. Music is haram.
But what if the Wicked soundtrack is the only thing keeping you sane because you're being forced to play on the soccer team... with Captain Handsome?! 2. A boy crush is double haram, and Ramin's parents will never accept it. But can he really be the only Muslim on Earth who feels this way? 3. Allah is merciful and makes no mistakes . Then isn't Ramin just the way Allah intended him to be? And so why should living your truth but losing everything — or living a lie and losing yourself — have to be a choice?!
Read Ramin Abbas has major questions by Ahmad Saber in our collection.
Top five for kids
Most popular with kids last month:
- Mister Monday: Keys to the Kingdom (Book 1) by Garth Nix, Fantasy
- An American Spring: Sofia's Immigrant Diary (My America) by Kathryn Lasky, Historical fiction
- On the court with: Kobe Bryant (Super Sports Star Series) by Glenn Stout, Stew Thornley, Sports and games
- Only You Can Save Mankind by Terry Pratchett, Science fiction
- Super Gran by Forrest Wilson, Humourous fiction
Top five for teens
Most popular with teens last month:
- Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet, Suspense and thrillers
- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (#1) by J. R. R. Tolkien, Fantasy
- Reckless (Powerless Trilogy #2) by Lauren Roberts, General fiction
- Midnight sun (Twilight Saga #5) by Stephenie Meyer, Romantasy
- The Promise: a novel by Danielle Steel, Contemporary romance
Service tip: Awards page
Stay up to date on major literary awards on our Awards page. Learn about nominated and winning titles and authors and find the books everyone is reading. It’s also a great place to visit if you are looking for something new and interesting to read.
Holiday hours in April
CELA and the Contact Centre will be closed on Friday, April 3 and Monday, April 6 for the Easter holiday.
Stay connected!
Visit CELA's social media, including Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, YouTube and our blog, for more news about what's happening in the world of accessible literature.