Island Studies Press

08/31/2026

Ed MacDonald will be giving a talk at the Belfast Highland Games on September 12, at 10:45 am, in the Croft House, 112 Selkirk Park Road, Eldon. He'll be talking about The Geography of Home and what it was like growing up on PEI in the late 50s to early 70s. (And he'll be at Bookmark tonight at 7 pm in conversation with his friend and poet, Thomas O'Grady.)

08/25/2026

The best days as a publisher are when new books arrive from the printer. The Alexander Drive Project by Sandy Kowalik is finally here. You can pick up a copy at Bookmark or at the launch on September 16 at 7 pm, in the Faculty Lounge at the University of Prince Edward Island. To think this book began with Sandy digging in her garden and incorporating found objects into assemblages, which then evolved into a social history of her neighbourhood.

08/17/2026

An Evening of Poetry in the Book Shop with Thomas O’Grady
Monday Aug 31st, 2026
7:00 PM-8:30 PM
Bookmark, 111 Kent Street

Mark your calendars! Thomas O’Grady will be reading from his latest collection, Coming Ashore: New and Selected Poems. He will be in discussion with his longtime friend, local poet and noted PEI historian Ed MacDonald, author of The Geography of Home.

08/10/2026

If you are an arts or cultural worker, consider filling out this survey before August 15th. If 100 responses are gathered from PEI, there will be a provincial report. Let's show how important arts & culture are to this island!

07/28/2026

Coming soon: The Alexander Drive Project by Sandy Kowalik

Post-war bungalows, also known as “victory houses,” were built across Canada to house returning veterans and their families. The Alexander Drive Project tells the story of one such neighbourhood built in 1948 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. This social history chronicles how the street has evolved over the last 75 years, touching upon themes of affordable housing, supportive neighbourhoods, mental health, addiction, violence, changing demographics, gender roles, and the impact of climate change. Artist and author Sandy Kowalik blends archival research, resident interviews, and photographs, along with a series of garden assemblages using found objects recovered from her yard to create a portrait of how the neighbourhood came to be and of the people who call(ed) it home.

07/22/2026

Thanks to Atlantic Books Today for including Judy Gaudet’s new poetry collection Another Landscape in their summer issue! “An attentive, grateful look at daily life and connection to nature.”

06/08/2026

Looking for a Father's Day gift for the Islander in your life? Check out The Geography of Home: Poems for a Lost Time by Edward MacDonald. The book depicts growing up in Newport, PEI, in the late 50s to early 70s and is a unique blend of history, archival photos, and poems. As one man in a bar recently told me, "I don't usually like poetry, but I loved Ed's book." Your dad or grandad might too.

05/26/2026

In case you missed the editors of Turning the Tide in conversation with Andrew Jennings about climate change, social change, and islandness, here is the link!

In this webinar, the editors of a new interdisciplinary volume of essays will highlight the local experiences of Islanders around the world who are now situa...

05/25/2026

Are you a writer on PEI interested in the future of the Island Literary Awards? Be a part of the community conversation on June 13.

05/19/2026

Islands Matter Seminar: Turning the Tide - Climate Change, Social Change, and Islandness, MAY 20 at 9 am (AT).

In this free webinar, the editors of a new interdisciplinary volume of essays will highlight the local experiences of Islanders around the world who are now situated at the forefront of climate change.

Offering multiple perspectives from 13 small island nations, Island territories and Canadian sub-national jurisdictions, this discussion will touch upon place-based innovative actions, including creative responses to climate change, the strength of islanders’ dynamic knowledge systems to weather climate impacts, the desire to move towards food sovereignty, and institutional responses to climate change that include culturally informed solutions.

While recognising that the scope of climate change is planetary and global, Turning the Tide brings the conversation down to earth by navigating climate futures through an island lens.

Register by clicking on the link below.

Seminars and Events at the Institute for Northern Studies