Coach House Books

Coach House Books Tucked away on Toronto's bpNichol Lane, Coach House has been printing & publishing innovative poetry, fiction, drama & nonfiction since 1965. It’s true.

https://linktr.ee/chbooks There’s a laneway in downtown Toronto named after a poet: bpNichol Lane. Tucked away on that back alley is a crumbling old garage—a coach house—and inside it are two Heidelberg printing presses, an Autominabinda binder, and a big guillotine-like cutter. Passing through those machines is a gorgeous, antique-colored laid paper called Zephyr. And on that paper sits some of t

he most intriguing lines and sentences you’ll ever encounter.

“To say that Coach House ‘publishes’ books would be to diminish the magic of what really happens within the old brick walls on bpNichol Lane,” says The Globe and Mail of our publishing program. Our books are handsome, but they’ve got personality and wit too—they are, like our building, a little off the beaten path: innovative poetry, brazen fiction, provocative nonfiction. Every one of our books is a little portable piece of bpNichol Lane’s magic. For a taste, try out Christian Bök’s bestselling, Griffin Prize–winning EUNOIA, or a New York Times’ Top 100 selection, LISA ROBERTSON'S MAGENTA SOUL WHIP. Or the internationally acclaimed ALL MY FRIENDS ARE SUPERHEROES by Andrew Kaufman. Or MY WINNIPEG, by visionary filmmaker Guy Maddin. We’ve got a swath of award nominations to our name—Griffins, Trilliums, Commonwealths, Lambdas, and more—and a stockpile of laudatory press, like NewPages’ claim that our books offer “a reason to read. A reason to write. A reason to believe in poetry.” Heck, Bookforum called us “the most esteemed literary house in Canada.” But we don’t let it go to our heads; we, and our Heidelbergs, just keep on beavering away in our little coach house to bring you the most unexpected, delicious, carnival-ride-like books we can find. Visit us at www.chbooks.com.

The Fall 2026 CIBA Booksellers’ List is finally here and we’re so excited to show off some of the fantastic books coming...
09/02/2026

The Fall 2026 CIBA Booksellers’ List is finally here and we’re so excited to show off some of the fantastic books coming your way! 📚✨

Goose Lane Editions, Coach House Books, Biblioasis, and Nimbus Publishing and Vagrant Press are thrilled to announce Your Favourite Indie’s Favourite Indies – the books by independent Canadian publishers selected for The Booksellers’ List.

The Booksellers’ List celebrates the top 20 books of the Spring, Summer, Fall, and
Winter seasons, as voted on by independent booksellers across Canada.
This Fall, among the selections are:
📖 Your Breath in Charcoal by Nicholas Herring (Goose Lane Editions)
📖 Women, Walking edited by Jane Farrow and Zahra Ebrahim (Coach House
Books)
📖 Daphnis and Chloe by Colin McAdam (Biblioasis)
📖 The Little Way by Carol Bruneau (Nimbus Publishing)

For more information on the books, the selection process, or what this list means for you as a book lover, head to IndieBookstores.ca

Join us in congratulating Kate Cayley, whose first novel PROPERTY has been shortlisted for the 2026 Toronto Book Awards!...
09/01/2026

Join us in congratulating Kate Cayley, whose first novel PROPERTY has been shortlisted for the 2026 Toronto Book Awards!

Established by Toronto City Council in 1974, the Toronto Book Awards honour works of literary merit that are inspired by the city and its residents. All five shortlisted titles are now available widely via Toronto Public Library. 📚

Hear Kate Cayley read from Property, alongside the other finalists, at the following events:
🌟September 21 at the Arts & Letters Club
🌟September 26 at Word On The Street
🌟November 10 at the Toronto Book Awards Ceremony (held at the Toronto Reference Library)

Women, Walking: Notes on Lives in Motion, edited by Zahra Ebrahim and Jane Farrow, is officially out today – and we are ...
09/01/2026

Women, Walking: Notes on Lives in Motion, edited by Zahra Ebrahim and Jane Farrow, is officially out today – and we are thrilled to announce it is featured on the Fall 2026 Canadian Independent Booksellers’ List!

Women, Walking explores the broad spectrum of women’s experiences and perspectives on walking, from everyday strolls that let the mind breathe to ambitious journeys that test courage and resolve. 

Co-edited by Zahra Ebrahim and Jane Farrow, this anthology features thirty vignettes, essays, graphic art, poems, and interviews, with contributors discussing identity, love, social connection, grief, and wonder. They each take us on a different path, but share common ground in highlighting the deep significance to be found in an ordinary walk.

Bookseller Alison Dunn, from Beggars Banquet Books in Gananoque, ON, raves: ‘We’re excited to share Women, Walking, which explores the experiences of a wide range of women, many Canadian, as they journey on foot towards themselves. This intriguing collection will be on our gift-giving lists this year and will please walkers and armchair-adventurers alike.’

Women, Walking is available at your local independent bookstore now! Join us at an upcoming event in Toronto celebrating its release (for full event details head to chbooks.com/events). 🚶🏽‍♀️🏃🏿‍♀️👩🏻‍🦽👩🏼‍🦯

Less than two weeks until : meet authors, buy books, eat hot dogs, get an impromptu tour of the Coach House!From 5 PM o...
08/28/2026

Less than two weeks until : meet authors, buy books, eat hot dogs, get an impromptu tour of the Coach House!

From 5 PM on at 80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto, on Thursday, September 10. RSVP at the link our bio (or chbooks.com/events).🌭🌭🌭

Help us out on Sep 10 and bring cash (small bills and coins) for drink tickets!

Less than two weeks until : meet authors, buy books, eat hot dogs, get an impromptu tour of the Coach House!From 5 PM o...
08/28/2026

Less than two weeks until : meet authors, buy books, eat hot dogs, get an impromptu tour of the Coach House!

From 5 PM on at 80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto, on Thursday, September 10. 🌭🌭🌭

RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/coach-house-books-2026-wayzgoose-tickets-1997001300648?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join us for the 2026 Wayzgoose on Thursday, September 10! Out front of the Coach House (80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto), from 5 PM 'til late. RSVP now through the link in our bio. 🪿🍻📚🌭🐿️

Q: What is a Wayzgoose?

A: It's traditionally a party given by printers to mark the traditional end of summer and the start of the season of working by candlelight.

But we do it a bit differently! There will be free food (hot dogs and snacks), cheap beverages (alcoholic and nonalcoholic), and book sales. Meet fellow book lovers and authors, and discover your new favourite book.

Please note that the event is outdoors on mostly level pavement. There will be an accessible porta-potty.

A brilliant 5 à 7 last night with Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele – thank you to everyone for coming out! (Final pic he...
08/26/2026

A brilliant 5 à 7 last night with Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele – thank you to everyone for coming out! (Final pic here from our friends Invisible Books!)

You can join us next at these events in Toronto:
❤️‍🔥 WAYZGOOSE 2026: 5 PM ’til Late on Sep 10 at the Coach House (80 bpNichol Lane)
❤️‍🔥 WOMEN, WALKING BOOK LAUNCH with Zahra Ebrahim and Jane Farrow: 7 PM on Sep 16 at Henderson Brewing Co. (128a Sterling Rd.)
❤️‍🔥 WORD ON THE STREET: Sep 26 and 27 at David Pecaut Square

As always, make sure to sign up for our newsletter so you don’t miss anything! 💌

Tonight! See you at 5 for readings from Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele. 📚‼
08/25/2026

Tonight! See you at 5 for readings from Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele. 📚‼

Tomorrow at the Coach House! Our rescheduled 5 à 7 reading from the heat wave earlier this summer, featuring Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele, masters of Southwestern Ontario Gothic.

Join us from 5 PM at 80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto, to hear from these two greats!

Tomorrow at the Coach House! Our rescheduled 5 à 7 reading from the heat wave earlier this summer, featuring Andrew Kauf...
08/24/2026

Tomorrow at the Coach House! Our rescheduled 5 à 7 reading from the heat wave earlier this summer, featuring Andrew Kaufman and Sydney Hegele, masters of Southwestern Ontario Gothic.

Join us from 5 PM at 80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto, to hear from these two greats!

'In the decades prior to the publication of “The English Patient,” he was involved in collaborative literary publishing ...
08/20/2026

'In the decades prior to the publication of “The English Patient,” he was involved in collaborative literary publishing in Ontario, as a participant in the work of the avant-garde Coach House Press, and in the editing and production of the literary magazine Brick...' (CC: Brick, A Literary Journal)

A fantastic exploration of Michael Ondaatje's early work in The New Yorker:

Michael Ondaatje had been experimenting across forms for decades before the publication of “The English Patient,” teaching writers who had crossed borders to arrive in the West to spell out their own liberation.

It's almost time for 🪿🪿🪿RSVP for the annual Coach House Books Wayzgoose now via the link in our bio or chbooks.com/eve...
08/18/2026

It's almost time for 🪿🪿🪿

RSVP for the annual Coach House Books Wayzgoose now via the link in our bio or chbooks.com/events. We can't wait to see you all on September 10th at the Coach House (80 bpNichol Lane, Toronto) for books, hot dogs, and beverages.

Shots above are from our Diamond Anniversary Wayzgoose in 2025, celebrating 60 years of Coach House!

Address

80 BpNichol Lane
Toronto, ON
M5S3J4

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+14169792217

Website

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