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
Literary Wives: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler
Literary Wives is an on-line book group that examines the meaning and role of wife in different books. Every other month, we post and discuss a book with this question in mind: What does this book say about wives or about the experience of being a wife? Don’t forget to check out the other members of Literary … Continue reading Literary Wives: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler
Reading Ireland Month: Donal Ryan
I always have so much fun choosing books for Reading Ireland Month, but then never seem to have enough time to fit them all in. Two years ago (already!) I was the lucky winner of Cathy's giveaway for A Slanting of the Sun by Donal Ryan, and had planned to read it last year, but … Continue reading Reading Ireland Month: Donal Ryan
Canada Reads 2017 Mini Reviews
The theme for Canada Reads 2017 is "the one book Canadians should read now", and the debates will air on March 27 to 30. Here are the five books being debated this year, in the order of when I read them. Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis, defended by Humble the Poet, a rapper, poet and … Continue reading Canada Reads 2017 Mini Reviews
Emily Readalong: Emily Climbs
Contains spoilers! When it came to writing the sequels to her novels, Anne of Green Gables and Emily of New Moon, L.M. Montgomery "felt little interest". According to Mary Henley Rubio in The Gift of Wings, it was "only her personal discipline that got her through the sequels, where her feisty heroines had to be … Continue reading Emily Readalong: Emily Climbs
Sex and Death: Stories, edited by Sarah Hall and Peter Hobbs
What civil lives we lead. So mannered, so controlled. Everything tidy and safe, everything put in its place. How hard we try not to be frightened, not to let the mind and body misbehave, not to come undone. Look at us in our ties and our stockings, taking vitamins and buying prophylactics, arranging mortgages and … Continue reading Sex and Death: Stories, edited by Sarah Hall and Peter Hobbs
Library Checkout: February 2017
Hosted by Charleen at It's a Portable Magic. The last time I participated in Library Checkout was April 2016, right before our library closed for several months to move to a new location. It's now bigger and more beautiful than ever before (it wasn't very big or beautiful before, but is now quite beautiful). I've … Continue reading Library Checkout: February 2017
Lemon by Cordelia Strube
Lemon completely took me by surprise. First, I wasn't expecting to love it (and her) so much. Second, I wasn't expecting it to break my heart. And third, I wasn't expecting it to be so relevant. Lemon is a coming-of-age story that deals with bullying, violence against women, and a search for a place to call … Continue reading Lemon by Cordelia Strube
The Break by Katherena Vermette
[Goodreads synopsis] When Stella, a young Métis mother, looks out her window one evening and spots someone in trouble on the Break — a barren field on an isolated strip of land outside her house — she calls the police to alert them to a possible crime. In a series of shifting narratives, people who … Continue reading The Break by Katherena Vermette
Consumed by Ink 