Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 1

Caption: Lives of the Saints won the Governor General's Literary Award for fiction in 1990. (Vintage Books/Penguin Books/Cormorant Books)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 2

Caption: Fugitive Pieces won the Books in Canada First Novel Award (now known as the Amazon.ca First Novel Award) in 1997. (St. Martin's Griffin/Emblem Editions/Emblem Editions)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 3

Caption: Fall on Your Knees was a finalist for Canada Reads 2010, when it was defended by Perdita Felicien. (Vintage Canada/Grove Press/Emblem Editions)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 4

Caption: Three Day Road won the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize in 2005. (Emblem Editions/Penguin Canada/Emblem Editions)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 5

Caption: Ru won Canada Reads 2015 when it was successfully defended by Cameron Bailey. (Vintage Canada/House of Anansi Press/Vintage Canada)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 6

Caption: Us Conductors by Sean Michaels won the Scotiabank Giller Prize in 2014. (Random House/Douglas & McIntyre/McClelland & Stewart)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 7

Caption: What the Body Remembers won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book in the Caribbean and Canada. (Anchor Canada/Vintage Canada/McClelland & Stewart)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 8

Caption: Stanley Park was a contender for Canada Reads 2007, when it was defended by Jim Cuddy. (Vintage Canada/House of Anansi Press)

Image | The 25 greatest Canadian debut novels - Image 9

Caption: Lullabies for Little Criminals won Canada Reads 2007, when it was championed by John K. Samson. (HarperCollins/Goose Lane)