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512 ratings | 435 reviews | avg rating:3.91

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Michelle’s Year In Books

Michelle’s 2025 Year in Books

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Michelle Barker’s Followers (63)

Michelle’s Bookshelves

to-read (135)
currently-reading (1)
read (516)
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2015-reads (47)
2016-reads (54)
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Michelle’s Friends (138)

Julia

2,003 books | 29 friends

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19 books | 73 friends

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36 books | 35 friends

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1,734 books | 3,424 friends

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273 books | 98 friends

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1,049 books | 92 friends

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277 books | 484 friends

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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

CHALLENGE

Michelle Barker has read 37 of 50 books.

74%

Michelle Barker

Goodreads Author

Born

in Vancouver, Canada

Website

http://www.michellebarker.ca

Twitter

MBarker_190

Genre

Young Adult, Children's, Fiction

Influences

Fantasy: Ursula le Guin, Stephen King, Anthony Doerr
Poetry: Mary Olive ...more

Member Since

February 2013

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I was born and raised in Vancouver. I attended Arts One at UBC, studied for a year at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and graduated with a BA from UBC in English literature. After a short foray into comp lit, I left the Master's program and worked as a research/editing assistant to Sherrill MacLaren. Sailed across the Pacific from Vancouver to Hawaii, had four children, lived for a summer in Montreal, a year in France, and then the Eastern Townships of Quebec for 10 years. After spending 7 years in the Okanagan, I've returned to Vancouver. I received my MFA in creative writing at UBC's optional-residency program in 2015 and work as a senior editor with https://darlingaxe.com

Winner of gold National Magazine award in personal journalism ...more

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Combine Editions
Michelle Barker’s books

Average rating: 4.0 · 887 ratings · 283 reviews · 9 distinct works • Similar authors

	The House of One Thousand Eyes 3.91 avg rating — 386 ratings — published 2018 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	My Long List of Impossible Things 4.06 avg rating — 191 ratings — published 2020 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Year of Borrowed Men by Michelle Barker (Goodreads Author), Renné Benoit (Illustrations) 3.89 avg rating — 132 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Immersion and Emotion: The Two Pillars of Storytelling by Michelle Barker (Goodreads Author), David Griffin Brown (Goodreads Author) 4.51 avg rating — 65 ratings — published 2023 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Beggar King 3.82 avg rating — 39 ratings — published 2013 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tesseracts 14: Strange Canadian Stories by Matt Moore (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Brett Alexander Savory (Editor), Jon Martin Watts (Contributor) 3.68 avg rating — 34 ratings — published 2010 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Story Skeleton: The Classics by David Griffin Brown (Goodreads Author), Michelle Barker (Goodreads Author) 4.58 avg rating — 26 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Fake Query Letters by Dead Authors by David Griffin Brown (Goodreads Author), Michelle Barker (Goodreads Author) 4.67 avg rating — 15 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Old Growth, Clear-Cut: Poems of Haida Gwaii it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 2012	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Michelle Barker…

122 posts
Michelle Barker's Blog: Work in Progress

Better Call Clod?

Have I mentioned that my novel is trying to kill me? Yes, it’s one of those (I mean, they’re all one of those at some stage, but this one seems to have a gun in each hand and a knife hidden in an ankle sheath). I sent it out on submission in the spring, thinking it was ready, then spent four months writing something else. The response was… not what I’d hoped for, so I decided to sit down with it a

Michelle is Currently Reading

Michelle Barker is currently reading

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay (Neapolitan Novels, #3)

by Elena Ferrante

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Apr 16, 2022 04:20PM

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Michelle’s Recent Updates

Michelle Barker wrote a new blog post Better Call Clod? Have I mentioned that my novel is trying to kill me? Yes, it’s one of those (I mean, they’re all one of those at some stage, but this one seems to hav Read more of this blog post »
14 hours, 51 min ago · like
Michelle Barker rated a book it was amazing Be Brief and Tell Them Everything by Brad Listi (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I loved this book. It felt so honest and was so often heartbreaking. I also raised a child with disabilities, so the idea of learning to carry fire rang very true to me. Not sure why this is a novel and not memoir, but maybe I'm making assumptions I ...more
Oct 10, 2026 04:13PM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O'Brien	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I liked the creativity of the POV and structure but had trouble connecting to the characters but felt to me like the focus was on the former rather than the latter and it wasn't enough to carry the story. The book went on much longer than it needed t ...more
Oct 06, 2026 05:51AM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book did not like it The One (Dark Future #1) by John Marrs (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I gave this book WAY more time than I normally would have because the premise was so good. But by the time I got about halfway I realized there was no redeeming this novel and it wasn't worth continuing. So much has been mishandled on both the struct ...more
Sep 29, 2026 12:17PM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book it was amazing Bad Monkey (Andrew Yancy, #1) by Carl Hiaasen (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Hilarious novel. I loved it—even though the ending felt like it went on a little too long. Still, I'll be reading more of his work. ...more
Sep 14, 2026 04:46PM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book really liked it What I Wish I Knew About Luck: A Crash Course on Turning Aspirations into Achievements by Tina Seelig	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 10, 2026 09:32AM · like
Michelle Barker rated a book it was amazing Billy Summers by Stephen King (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I just loved this novel, read it obsessively. Always a pleasure to immerse myself in one of Stephen King's amazing worlds, and I especially liked this one for the deep third POV that belonged almost exclusively to Billy Summers. Usually he jumps arou ...more
Sep 06, 2026 09:49PM · 1 like · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book it was amazing The Dinner by Herman Koch	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Wow. This was unexpected in nearly every way. Koch skillfully draws you in through the first third (half?) of the book with wonderful humour and a seemingly light story, and then...POW. Reality. The narrator has been hiding things. A lot of things. W ...more
Aug 29, 2026 11:32AM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book it was amazing No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This was a reread for me, and I basically gulped it down in one day. Anyone wishing to study how voice impacts narrative just has to pick up this book. McCarthy is a master at it. Plus he writes lines like this: You've been giving up things for years ...more
Aug 20, 2026 07:32PM · like · see review
Michelle Barker rated a book did not like it The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work by Shawn Achor (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Felt like he referenced a lot of studies that I've seen before. Nothing new here. Didn't feel the need to continue with it. ...more
Aug 01, 2026 02:56PM · like · see review

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Topics Mentioning This Author

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Harry Potter Fans : What book are you reading right now?	316	254	Dec 04, 2018 08:14AM

Michelle’s Quotes

“The road goes upward towards the light; but the laden traveler may never reach the end of it.”
― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Tombs of Atuan

tags: fantasy-series

6 likes

“You want the truth, of course. You want me to put two and two together. But two and two doesn’t necessarily get you the truth. Two and two equals a voice outside the window. Two and two equals the wind. The living bird is not its labeled bones.”
― Margaret Atwood, The Blind Assassin

85 likes

“There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.”
― Patrick Rothfuss, The Wise Man's Fear

tags: fear, name-of-the-wind, patrick-rothfuss, wisdom

6341 likes

“Where do you think stories come from, E'lir Kvothe? Every tale has deep roots somewhere in the world.”
― Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

2 likes

“Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts. There are seven words that will make a person love you. There are ten words that will break a strong man's will. But a word is nothing but a painting of a fire. A name is the fire itself.”
― Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

473 likes

More of Michelle’s quotes…