Canadian Literature (journal)

Canadian Literature (journal)

Canadian Literature is a quarterly of criticism and review published out of the University of British Columbia.

Canadian Literature was founded in 1959 by George Woodcock, who produced 73 issues before retiring in 1977. After Woodcock's retirement, the University of British Columbia invited William H. New, formerly an advisory editor, to act as editor. New headed the journal until 1995, producing 72 issues. Between 1995 and 2003, Eva-Marie Kröller took up the role of editor. In addition to producing 34 issues, Kröller expanded Canadian Literature by introducing a peer review process and recruiting distinguished Canadian and international scholars to make up an editorial board. In 2003, Laurie Ricou, who has been either an associate or acting editor since 1983, became the journal's editor. Ricou's term ended in 2007 and saw Margery Fee taking the helm as editor.

Canadian Literature aims to foster a wider academic interest in the Canadian literary field, and publishes a wide range of material from Canadian and international scholars, writers, and poets. Each issue contains a variety of articles and an extensive book reviews section. As well, each issue includes selections of unpublished original poetry from Canadian contributors.

To give its pages depth and breadth, Canadian Literature alternates general and special issues. The general issues deal with a range of periods and topics, while the special issues focus on more specific topics, including travel, ethnicity, women's writing, and multiculturalism. Canadian Literature is not aligned with any single theoretical approach; rather, it is interested in exploring articles on all subjects relating to writers and writing in Canada. Each issue contains both English and French content from a wide range of contributors and has been described as "critically eclectic".

Canadian Literature, a quarterly publication, has an average page length of 208 pages. The print circulation is approximately over a thousand while the readership is worldwide as it is distributed in Canada, US, and twenty-five other countries. Institutions make up 85% of the subscription base, which is largely made up of university and college libraries. In 2007, Canadian Literature's subscriber base was 45% Canadian, 36% American and 19% international. Canadian Literature is also available on-line through EBSCO and ProQuest Subscription Services. Electronic versions of book reviews from the current issue and back issues are available on the Canadian Literature website.