Best Canadian Stories 2025

Steven W. Beattie, a writer in Stratford, Ontario, spent twelve and a half years as Review Editor at Quill & Quire, Canada’s magazine of the publishing trade industry. His writing and criticism have appeared in the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star, the National Post, The Walrus, Canadian Notes & Queries, and elsewhere. He maintains the literary website That Shakespearean Rag.

Praise for Best Canadian Stories"One of the best things about the end of the year is having a chance to look back. The three Best Canadian volumes ... are a snapshot of some of the finest in Canadian writing this year."—Robert J. Wiersema, Toronto Star"In Best Canadian Stories 2025, the editor Steven W. Beattie argues that short stories represent the ideal form of contemporary storytelling, because they 'cannot be consumed passively.' By capturing complicated experiences, these narratives serve as the visceral, algorithm-free antidote to an aloof world . . . The collection best depicts human flaws and the lessons they impart."—Ray Reid, Literary Review of Canada's Bookworm Newsletter“Each of the sixteen stories carries a distinctive voice . . . Biblioasis’s Best just keeps getting better.”—Michael Greenstein, The Miramichi Reader"It is clear that Beattie values technical excellence, plot, and readability . . . Best Canadian Stories 2025 exceeded my expectations and is about as solid as short story collections get."—Jessica Poon, The BC Review"This latest edition of Best Canadian Stories 2025 has the flow and beauty of a mixed tape, the logic and precision of a well-loaded dishwasher."—The Central European Journal of Canadian Studies“The legacy for Canadian literature in the Best Canadian Stories series can’t be overstated. For years the collection has been the place to discover Canadian writers.”—Winnipeg Free Press“Best Canadian Stories … combines both emerging and established voices for a fascinating glimpse at the most exciting short fiction coming out of this country.”—Open Book“The arrival, late in the fall each year, of [this] collection is always cause for fanfare.”—Quill & Quire