Loan Stars is the readers' advisory tool that allows libraries across Canada to indicate popular upcoming titles. Using LibraryData, the library data aggregation service, the forthcoming titles with the most orders become Loan Stars top picks!

But who are the authors and illustrators behind these great Loan Stars reads?

We find out in our series, Meet the Loan Stars.

Meet C. L. Polk 🍁

Photo - C. L. Polk — Phot credit: Mike Tan

C. L. Polk is the Subjective Chaos Kind of Award winner for their book, The Midnight Bargain which was also a Canada Reads, Nebula, Locus, Ignyte, and World Fantasy Award finalist. Mx. Polk lives in Calgary on Treaty 7 land, among the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy, the Tsuut’ina, the Îyâxe Nakoda Nations, and the Métis Nation (Region 3).

Their latest book, Even Though I Knew The End, is on the November 2022 Adult list!

Meet C. L. Polk and learn all about their love for libraries, book recommendations, and more in the interview below.

If you could visit any library in the world, where would you go?

I would love to visit the Merrill Collection in Toronto, actually! I've never seen it.

Do you have a favourite librarian, real or fictional?

I really liked Zelda Schiff, the head of the Library of the Neitherlands in the TV adaptation of The Magicians. I was very curious about her and the Library's true purpose.

Which book would you choose to recommend to library patrons?

Only one? Oh no. Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat. The most practical choice I can think of.

What does being a Loan Stars pick mean to you?

I got my first library card before I even enrolled in school. Library cards helped me read as much as I wanted to — there wasn't much money to buy books for most of my life. Being a Loan Stars pick is such an honour — the places that sheltered a story-hungry daydreamer adding one more incredible gift beyond the hundreds I already received.

Thank you for answering our questionnaire, C. L. Polk!

Are you a Loan Stars-recommended author or illustrator who wants to be featured on our blog? Get in touch with us to get started.

Until next time!