But from childhood my one wish and ambition was to write. I never had any other or wished to have. - L.M. Montgomery Maud is a fictional account of Lucy Maud Montgomery's life between the ages of 14 and 17. Melanie Fishbane writes in detail about Maud's family, friends, and possible romances. Maud grows up … Continue reading Maud: A Novel Inspired by the Life of L.M. Montgomery by Melanie J. Fishbane
Category: Canadian Lit
Four-Letter Words by Chad Pelley
I've had a hankering for more Chad Pelley since reading his two novels last year, Away From Everywhere and Every Little Thing. His short story collection, Four-Letter Words has been shortlisted for the Alistair MacLeod Prize for Short Fiction for the 2017 Atlantic Book Awards. It's up against two other collections I've read this year; Bad … Continue reading Four-Letter Words by Chad Pelley
Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada by Lawrence Hill (And an interview with my sister)
A couple of years ago, I asked my family about their favourite books, and this is one of the books my sister Kate recommended. She sounded so passionate about it that I have had every intention of reading it ever since. Maybe it's all the global conversations happening right now about race and discrimination, or … Continue reading Black Berry, Sweet Juice: On Being Black and White in Canada by Lawrence Hill (And an interview with my sister)
“Everything written by any woman was written by all women…”: Heather O’Neill, Scaachi Koul, and Erin Wunker
Notes From A Feminist Killjoy by Erin Wunker I finished this excellent book a couple of months ago, and I still find myself looking at things differently than I did before reading it. I underlined so many parts that I'm surprised at myself for not writing about it yet. But when I saw that Notes … Continue reading “Everything written by any woman was written by all women…”: Heather O’Neill, Scaachi Koul, and Erin Wunker
Poetry Month 2017: Budge Wilson, Michael Crummey, and Book Spine Poetry #3
Let me start off by saying that I'm not generally a poetry person. But I have been learning to appreciate it more, as well as figuring out what kind of poetry works best for me (which I'm beginning to think is the secret). Last year, I read poetry by Rita Joe and George Elliott Clarke, and what … Continue reading Poetry Month 2017: Budge Wilson, Michael Crummey, and Book Spine Poetry #3
The Wind Seller by Rachael Preston
Rachael Preston got her inspiration for The Wind Seller when, one day, she found a box of Elinor Glyn's writing books in a Prince Edward Island antiques store. The box even had the mailing label still on it - addressed to a Noble Mattinson, Great Village, NS, Canada. Nobel Mattinson becomes Noble Matheson, and one … Continue reading The Wind Seller by Rachael Preston
Steal Away Home: One Woman’s Epic Flight to Freedom – And Her Long Road Back to the South by Karolyn Smardz Frost
Karolyn Smardz Frost spent ten years researching for and writing this book, and it shows. The story centers around a woman named Cecelia Jane Reynolds, but there are many, many other interesting and amazing people and events happening in this book. So many names and dates, and I wanted to absorb and remember every one … Continue reading Steal Away Home: One Woman’s Epic Flight to Freedom – And Her Long Road Back to the South by Karolyn Smardz Frost
The 1951 Club: Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies
I had no idea that Tempest-Tost would be so much fun to read. Maybe if I'd ever read anything by Robertson Davies, I would have known, but embarrassingly, this was my first time. The problem now is that I want to read them all! Tempest-Tost is the first book in the Salterton Trilogy, and the … Continue reading The 1951 Club: Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies
Emily Readalong: Emily’s Quest
Contains spoilers! In The Gift of Wings, Mary Henley Rubio states that "Maud was relieved when she finished the book... It had been a chore." But you would never get that feeling while reading it. To me it felt like it was written in a whirl of headiness; it's a page-turner full of high emotions and … Continue reading Emily Readalong: Emily’s Quest
A Round-Up of Short Works: William Trevor, Robert J. Wiersema, and Lawrence Hill
Nights at the Alexandra by William Trevor This book was recommended to me by Don at Uncle Bardie's Stories & Such. And I am very grateful. A few years ago, I read Trevor's Love and Summer, which I thought was good but not quite enough to send me running to read more of his books. … Continue reading A Round-Up of Short Works: William Trevor, Robert J. Wiersema, and Lawrence Hill
Consumed by Ink 