Morris House Reading Series - Bishop's University

The Morris House Reading Series brings both established and up-and-coming authors to Bishop’s University to present their work, answer questions, and meet with the audience during the informal reception that follows.

The Series is currently being supported by the Quebec Writers’ Federation, Bishop’s University Academic Enrichment Fund, The Writers’ Union of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, and Bishop’s University Speakers Committee. The Series is also one of the founding members of the Literary Umbrella of Quebec (LUQ), a coalition of English-language Quebec literary promoters that shares its resources for the benefits of writers, students, organizers and the general public.

For more information about the Morris House Reading Series or upcoming readings, contact its organizer, Dr. Linda M. Morra (lmorra@ubishops.ca).

Linda Morra is a Professor of English at Bishop’s University and was the 2016-2017 Craig Dobbin Chair of Canadian Studies at UCD, Dublin. She has been directing the Morris House Reading Series since 2008.

The 2023-2024 reading series includes the following:

Events are free and open to the public. Books are available for advance purchase at the Co-op on campus. Morris House Reading Series gratefully acknowledges the Speakers’ Committee and The Writers’ Union of Canada for funding and support.

Gregory Betts

Friday, September 22, 2023,
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Location: NIC 008

Gregory Betts is a Canadian scholar, poet, editor and professor. He has taught at University of Toronto, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Brock University, and University College Dublin. He is currently a professor at Brock University with a specialty in Canadian and avant-garde literature. He has authored over ten books of poetry, including Dazzle Pods (2021), Sweet Forme: Shake-Speare’s Perfect Sonnets (Apothecary Press 2020), and This is Importance: A Students’ Guide to Literature (Wolsak and Wynn, 2013). His SSHRC-funded research monograph, Finding Nothing: The VanGardes, 1959-1975, which explores subsequent manifestations of intermedia avant-garde art and literature in Vancouver, was awarded the BC Book Prize and the Gabrielle Roy Prize in 2022.

Elise Moser

Thursday, October 12, 2023
5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Location: NIC 211 (hybrid event; please contact lmorra@ubishops.ca for Zoom link)

Elise Moser is the author of the YA novel Lily and Taylor (2013), from Groundwood Books. She has also published a novel for adults, Because I Have Loved and Hidden It (2009), from Cormorant Books, as well as many short stories and book reviews. She was the founding literary editor of Montreal’s online arts and culture magazine, The Rover (roverarts.com), and has collaborated with Leila Marshy to produce Mot/Town, a series of videos on Montreal writers in their neighbourhoods. Through the Quebec Writers’ Federation, she has led writing workshops and mentored emerging writers. She was president of QWF, 2009-2012.

Erum Shazia Hasan

Thursday, November 16, 2023
5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Location: Online Event (please contact lmorra@ubishops.ca for Zoom link)

Erum Shazia Hasan was born in Canada, raised in France, and is of Pakistani and Indian heritage. She designs initiatives to help communities improve their livelihoods, ensuring opportunities for women while protecting biodiversity. A Sustainable Development Consultant for various UN agencies, she lives in Toronto with her husband and their two children. We Meant Well, published by ECW Press in 2023, is her first novel.

Book cover of We Meant Well by Erum Shazia Hassan