Tara welcomes back Canadian author Finnian Burnett to discuss their latest novella-in-flash, Redshirts Sometimes Survive.

https://offtopicpublishing.com/product/redshirts-sometimes-survive-by-finnian-burnett/?srsltid=AfmBOoqqrDjkjomUw5LV1p4n7BFWy7-l2RrTh5Ty2L2VoSYamvlByFX8

"A neglected boy clings to an action figure like a lifeline. A trans man meets his childhood hero. An introvert finally finds her voice at a protest. Queer fans, lonely children, awkward convention-goers, and disillusioned adults seek out their favourite starships and captains for solace and strength. In these interconnected flash stories, the outcasts, the rebels, the bullied, and the weird find themselves, one other, and a place to call home. By turns moving, thoughtful, and wry, Redshirts Sometimes Survives offers connection and comfort. Being a redshirt doesn’t mean you’re doomed. Sometimes, it means you survive."

Books discussed:

• The House in the Cerulean Sea; Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune
• The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun
• Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
• Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
• The Book of Delights by Ross Gay
• Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White
• Ravens Don’t Get High Blood Pressure and Other Tales of Queer Love; The Life and Dead Trees (two works in progress); The Clothes Make the Man; The Price of Cookies by Finnian Burnett

https://www.instagram.com/finnianburnett/

https://finnburnett.com/

Rebecca and Tara discuss their impressions of the 2026 CBC's Canada Reads books and defenders for this year's debate. Don't forget to check out Rebecca's interview with author Tyler Hellard and Searching for Terry Punchout on February 10, 2026.

https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2026-contenders-9.7040200

https://www.cbc.ca/books/thenextchapter

If you have any comments or suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk for adults or the new one for youth books starting in May 2026, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com

It's Book Chat time! Rebecca had a meh reading month and Tara crushed it!!

Rebecca (@canadareadsamericanstyle):

• Director's Choice: Flint Institute of Arts by Tracee J. Glab
• Poets and Pahlevans: A Journey into the Heart of Iran; Walls: Travels Along the Barricades by Marcello Di Cintio
• Lost: Amelia Earhart's Three Mysterious Deaths and One Extraordinary Life by Rachel Hartigan

Tara (@onabranchreads):

• No Friend to This House by Natalie Haynes
• Bang Crunch by Neil Smith
• The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel
• Villain Hitting for Vicious Little Nobodies by Lindsay Wong
• The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson
  • "A Fine Old Firm"
• Why I Love Horror: Essays on Horror Literature by Becky Siegel Spratford
• A Truce That is Not Peace by Miriam Toews
• Redshirts Sometimes Survive by Finnian Burnett
• The Tinder Sonnets by Jennifer LoveGrove
• Shoebox by Sean Paul Bedell
• Good Guys by Sharon Bala
• Stag Dance; Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

If you have any comments or suggestions that you would like to share with Rebecca and Tara or you are interested in joining their monthly virtual book talk, please email them at craspod2019@gmail.com