Allen, D. Totem Poles of the Northwest. Surrey, British Columbia: Hancock House Publishers Ltd., 1977. Describes the importance of totem poles to native culture and totem pole sites and their history.

Brooks, Carellin. Wreck Beach. Vancouver: New Star Books, 2007. Discusses the natural history, the characters, and the issues surrounding one of the world’s most famous nudist beaches.

Coull, Cheryl. A Traveller’s Guide to Aboriginal B.C. Vancouver: Whitecap Books, 1996. Although this book covers native sites throughout British Columbia, the Lower Mainland (Vancouver) chapter is very comprehensive. Also included are details of annual festivals and events and hiking opportunities with a cultural slant.

Coupland, Douglas. City of Glass: Douglas Coupland’s Vancouver. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 2000. Best known for coining the term “Generation X” in his 1991 novel of the same name, local author Coupland delves deep into the cultural heart of Vancouver in City of Glass.

Duff, Wilson. The Indian History of British Columbia: The Impact of the White Man. Victoria: University of British Columbia Press, 1997. In this book Duff deals with the issues faced by natives in the last 150 years but also gives a good overview of their general history.

Harcourt, Mike, and Ken Cameron. City Making in Paradise: Nine Decisions That Saved Greater Vancouver’s Livability. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 2007. Former Vancouver mayor and premier (Harcourt) teams up with a respected regional planner to explore the issues and explain the impact of citizen actions that have created one of the world’s most “livable cities.”

Johnson, Audrey. Arts Beat: The Arts in Victoria. Winnipeg: J Gordon Shillingford Publishing, 2007. A longtime columnist for Victoria’s Times Colonist newspaper takes an insider’s look at the history of theater, music, dance, and visual arts in the capital through venues, people, and politics.

Johnson, Pauline. Legends of Vancouver. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1998. First published in 1911, this small book contains the writings of Pauline Johnson, a well-known writer and poet in the early part of the 1900s. She spent much of her time with native peoples, and this is her version of myths related to her by Joe Capilano, chief of the Squamish. This most recent edition is the latest of many reprints over the years; search out others at Vancouver’s many secondhand bookstores.

Kluckner, Michael. Vancouver the Way It Was. Vancouver: Whitecap Books, 1993. Now out of print, this easy-to-read history of Vancouver since the arrival of the first Europeans is stocked at most secondhand bookstores.

Lavallee, Omer. Van Horne’s Road. Montreal: Railfare Enterprises, 1974. William Van Horne was instrumental in the construction of Canada’s first transcontinental railway. This is the story of his dream, and of the boomtowns that sprung up along the railroad’s route. Lavallee devotes an entire chapter to telling the story of the railway’s push through British Columbia to Vancouver.

McDonald, Robert A.J. Making Vancouver: 1863–1913. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1997. Describes the formative years of Vancouver and the people who helped shape the city during this early period.

Murray, Tom. Canadian Pacific Railway. Osceola, Wisconsin, 2006. Railway buffs are spoilt for choice when it comes to reading about the history of Canada’s transcontinental railway, but this large-format book stands apart for its presentation of historical images and coverage of the railway industry today.

Nicol, Eric. Vancouver. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 1970. An often-humorous look at Vancouver and its colorful past through the eyes of Eric Nicol, one of Vancouver’s favorite columnists of the 1960s. The book has been reprinted a few times, and although it has been out of print for many years, Vancouver’s secondhand bookstores usually have multiple copies in stock.

Reksten, Terry. Rattenbury. Victoria: Sono Nis Press, 1998. The biography of Francis Rattenbury, British Columbia’s preeminent architect at the beginning of the 20th century. The histories of his most famous Victoria and Vancouver buildings are given, and the final chapter looks at his infamous murder at the hands of his wife’s young lover.

Rossiter, Sean. The Hotel Georgia. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1998. A complete history of Vancouver’s oldest and grandest accommodation in a coffee table-style book.

Sommer, Warren. The Ambitious City. Harbour Publishing: Vancouver, 2007. A detailed account of North Vancouver, from the Squamish people who camped along the shoreline to the impact of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Spaner, David. Dreaming in the Rain: How Vancouver Became Hollywood North by Northwest. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press, 2003. Tells the story of Vancouver’s short but dramatic rise as one of the world’s premier filmmaking centers.

Twigg, Alan. Vancouver and Its Writers. Vancouver: Harbour Publishing, 1986. Vancouver has produced many fine writers, and other writers have moved to the city from elsewhere. This book gives short biographies on them all.

Wynn, Graeme. Vancouver and Its Region. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1992. An in-depth look at the city, its geography, and the history of its urbanization through aerial photography, maps, graphs, and descriptive passages.