The Island Lecture Series presents a talk by Billy Johnson, “Arthur Huff Fauset’s Folklore from Nova Scotia and the Idea of Modern Canada,” on October 20, 2026, at 7 pm, in the Faculty Lounge, Main Building Room 201, University of Prince Edward Island. 

Published in 1931, Arthur H. Fauset’s Folklore from Nova Scotia was the first scholarly collection of folktales in Canada and the only substantial collection of Black Canadian folklore in the 20^th century. Largely overlooked in its time, the book’s significance goes beyond its having been the first and only collection of its kind. By illuminating the rich folk culture of Black Nova Scotia, Fauset challenged dominant assumptions about whose stories were worthy of preservation, and he unsettled the myths that folklorists told themselves about the people and places they studied.

Assistant Professor Billy Johnson joined the English Department at the University of Prince Edward Island in July 2026. He is the author of Publishing Place: Transatlantic Modernity and Periodical Culture on Canada’s East Coast (McGill-Queen’s UP 2025), which was awarded the 2026 Clio Atlantic Prize for Best Book. His research spans Atlantic Canadian literature, Canadian publishing history, and Black Canadian culture in the 19^th and 20^th centuries.

The lecture is free, and all are welcome. For more information, contact Bren Simmers at 902-566-0386 or ispstaff@upei.ca.