Finding Edward by Sheila Murray (Cormorant Books) Finding Edward is a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction. The two main characters in this book are Jamaican-Canadian with a 70 year age difference. Cyril grew up in Jamaica and--having just lost his mother--has recently come to Toronto to attend university. Edward was given … Continue reading From the Library: Finding Edward, Quiet Time, and Ducks
Emily Urquhart, a journalist with a doctorate in folklore, prefers the term "Wonder Tales" to "Fairy Tales". It suggests a sense of wonder while reading, rather than just the expectation of fairies or other fantastical creatures. I think we should call all stories "Wonder Tales". While reading these essays, I let Emily stoke a sense … Continue reading Ordinary Wonder Tales by Emily Urquhart
The first two of these books are published by Rare Machines, an imprint of Dundurn Press. All three feature provocative ideas such as an invisible "spy" organization, artificial intelligence, and institutions where the touch-starved can go to touch and be touched. The characters in these books--despite the books being so wildly different from each other--are … Continue reading Dundurn Press: David Whitton, Victoria Hetherington, and K.S. Covert
Unfiltered: An Irreverent History of Beer in Nova Scotia Despite the fact that most of Laffoley's books are nonfiction, until now, I have only read his novels. (The Blue Tattoo, A Halifax Christmas Carol, and Halifax Nocturne) Because I liked them so much, I was happy to give his nonfiction a try. Beer isn't really … Continue reading Steven Laffoley: irreverent histories of food and drink in Nova Scotia
As always, the best thing about book blogging is the bookish community, online and in "real" life. I have loved getting to know so many passionate readers and bloggers and writers and reviewers and publishers. Thank you for reading and commenting and visiting and chatting and writing and publishing! 🙂 ATLANTIC CANADA Seven years ago … Continue reading Highlights of 2022
Contemporary fiction set in Newfoundland and historical fiction set in Nova Scotia. What more could you want? The Wards by Terry Doyle (Breakwater Books) This is my type of book. An ordinary family, characters you get to know so well that you're never surprised by their actions, even when their actions surprise you. The Wards … Continue reading ‘The Wards’ by Terry Doyle and ‘Birth Road’ by Michelle Wamboldt
Novellas in November is being hosted this year by Rebecca at BookishBeck and Cathy at 746Books. I try to participate each year - some years I manage to read more than others. The two I've read this year are both excellent, both translations, and very different from each other. Manam by Rima Elkouri, translated by … Continue reading Novellas in November 2022: #NovNov22
This year my daughter is doing a better job taking part in MARM than I am - her grade 12 English class is reading The Handmaid's Tale. I thought this might be a good chance for me to ask her a few questions. First I asked what she likes about The Handmaid's Tale, and she … Continue reading #MARM: Margaret Atwood Reading Month 2022
There are 14 books on the Giller Prize longlist this year, and so far I've read ten of them. I like to try to read as many from the longlist as I can, because, as we all know, they are usually just as good as the shortlisted books. There may even be some not on … Continue reading 2022 Giller Prize Books
The title of this books makes me think of the social media memes that ask you to indicate where you're from without saying where you're from. Usually they do this with pictures, but local phrases and sayings could work nicely too. Some Hellish is set in Prince Edward Island, where it's common to hear people … Continue reading Some Hellish by Nicholas Herring
Consumed by Ink 