Leslie Shimotakahara is an award-winning author of three novels and a memoir, as well as numerous short fiction and essays. She won the Canada-Japan Literary Prize and has been shortlisted for the K.M. Hunter Artist Award. Her fourth novel, THE BREAKWATER, will be published in April 2026 by Cormorant Books.

Video: Interview with “Shawn Breathes Books”

In this interview, Leslie discusses her writing and research process (specifically with respect to her book Sisters of the Spruce), and mentions a few books on her nightstand: