David Huebert's last story collection was leading up to this novel; Chemical Valley was filled with characters who lived and worked in southern Ontario's oil country. Oil People takes a closer look at the same area's history in the oil industry by weaving a tale about a family that spans 125 years. The book alternates … Continue reading Oil People by David Huebert
It's hard to say who I admire more: a person who spends chunks of their life underwater with oxygen tanks strapped to their back, or a person who spends chunks of their life on their feet with a backpack filled with necessities strapped to their back. In Search of the Great Canadian Shark by Chris … Continue reading Maritime Memoirs: Chris Harvey-Clark and Emily Taylor Smith
It was mostly a coincidence that I read three new novels within a month that are set in the Maritimes and involve the supernatural. A most satisfying and happy coincidence. I started with Rose Sutherland's A Sweet Sting of Salt, which I read for my Real Life book club. Historical fiction, set on the south … Continue reading The Supernatural: Rose Sutherland, Nancy Taber, and Michelle Hébert
Death by a Thousand Cuts by Shashi Bhat The stories in Death by a Thousand Cuts are devastating, funny, and completely accessible. She makes reading feel easy and then drops a thought bomb on you that makes you realize how intentionally-crafted these stories are. In Dealbreaker, Asha is trying to find a partner through online … Continue reading From the Library: Shashi Bhat, Chelsea Wakelyn, and Lisa Brideau
One of the things I love about small presses is their willingness to take on authors with big imaginations who come up with stories rarely found in mainstream publishing. These books are not likely going to make it to the big displays at the Chapters/Indigo store, but are more likely to be placed into your … Continue reading Galleon Books: Jerrod Edson and Jake Swan
Message in a Bottle is a book that combines some of my favourite things: the ocean, seabirds and other marine animals, biology, snow and ice, and Atlantic Canadian stories. Holly Hogan is now one of my heroes, literary and otherwise. (And she's married to one of my other literary heroes - Michael Crummey. The two … Continue reading Message in a Bottle by Holly Hogan
Two Halifax/Dartmouth based authors writing about Crohn's Disease, depression, trips to the medical clinic, and a trip across Canada. Gutsy: living my best life with Crohn's Disease & ulcerative colitis by Heather Fegan (Nimbus Publishing) Gutsy was a double-nominee at this year's Nova Scotia Book Awards. Until reading this book, I had no idea how … Continue reading Maritime Memoirs: Heather Fegan and Martin Bauman
The Atlantic Book Awards took place at the beginning of June, as did the Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island Book Awards. The Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards are in progress. For me, the highlight of the Atlantic Book Awards is the Thomas Raddall Prize for Atlantic Fiction. Here are the five shortlisted … Continue reading Michelle Porter, William Ping, and the Atlantic Book Awards 2024
With the exception of Claudia Dey and Logan Steiner, all of these authors are either living in the Maritimes or are from the Maritimes. The settings range from Yarmouth, Barrington Passage, and Dartmouth to Ontario, Norway, and medieval England. The topics and characters include: a clandestine affair, a family scandal, a missing man, the daughter … Continue reading Catch-Up: Ian Colford, Jill MacLean, Bruce W. Bishop, Elaine McCluskey, Kate McLaughlin, Claudia Dey, Odette Barr, Colleen Landry, Beth Weatherbee, and Logan Steiner
Kilmeny of the Orchard is a novel that arose from the short story "Una of the Garden," which was published in 1908. In Magic Island, Elizabeth Waterston writes about the changes that were made by LMM as she re-worked the story. For example, the setting change from "garden" to "orchard" suggests "a development in Montgomery's … Continue reading #ReadingKilmeny: “She was, after all, nothing but a child…”
Consumed by Ink 