BOOK NEWS
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incite) will feature a multimedia presentation by bestselling author Timothy Taylor, and novelists Gurjinder Basran and Rupinder Gill in conversation with Hal Wake.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, April 6
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/inciteapril6
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
A Dram Come True - May 13, 2011
Presenting the ninth annual single malt scotch whisky sampling. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/dramcometrue
AWARDS & LISTS
The David Cohen Prize for Literature 2011 has been awarded to the English writer Julian Barnes for his lifetime's achievement in literature.
http://www.booktrust.org.uk/Prizes-and-awards/David-Cohen-Prize-for-Literature
Egyptian writer Alaa Al Aswany, author of The Yacoubian Building and On the State of Egypt has won this year's Arab Prize from Montreal's Blue Metropolis international literary festival.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/23/blue-met-lineup.html
Russell Wangersky's The Glass Harmonica has won this year's BMO Winterset award. The prize honours the best writing in Newfoundland and Labrador.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/25/wangersky-wintersize-prize.html
Thirty books have been shortlisted for the Atlantic Book Awards. Five are double nominees, including Alexander MacLeod's compilation of short fiction, Light Lifting. Awards will be announced mid-May.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/23/ns-atlantic-book-awards-short-list.html
The shortlist for this year's Donner Prize, which recognizes the best book on Canadian public policy, was revealed on Tuesday. The winner will be announced at the end of April.
http://arts.nationalpost.com/2011/03/29/donner-prize-reveals-shortlist/
The Australian author-illustrator, Shaun Tan, has won the Astrid Lindgren prize, the world's richest children's literature award.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/childrens-books-site/2011/mar/29/shaun-tan-astrid-lindgren-prize
The Montreal International Poetry Prize, a new $50,000 prize, aims to shine a light on English-language poets around the globe. Former British poet laureate Andrew Motion will judge the inaugural edition of the competition.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/29/poetry-montreal-prize.html
Canadian writer Rohinton Mistry has been shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize, an award given once every two years.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/canadian-author-rohinton-mistry-short-listed-for-man-booker/article1962538/
The Alcuin Society has announced the winners of its annual Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada.
http://blog.alcuinsociety.com/2011/03/announcing-2010-award-winners.html
NEWS & FEATURES
British thriller writer John Le Carré has requested that his name be withdrawn from the shortlist for the prestigious Man Booker International Prize, an unprecedented act, leaving judges stumped about what to do.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110330/wl_uk_afp/artsliteratureaustraliachinabritainbooksbooker
The panel of judges have refused Le Carré’s request to have his name formally withdrawn from the competition.
http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/books/2011/03/30/17810101-wenn-story.html
Children's author Julia Donaldson has vetoed an ebook version of her most famous title, The Gruffalo. Interactive book apps for children keep children from the written word, she says.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/25/gruffalo-author-julia-donaldson-ebook
Maurice Sendak aficionados will be thrilled to learn that this fall, Maurice Sendak will unveil Bumble-Ardy, the first book he's both written and illustrated in nearly 30 years.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/the-hot-button/wild-things-rejoice-new-maurice-sendak-book-to-hit-the-shelves/article1957325/
Is there a link between journalism and poetry? Olivia O'Leary believes that there was a strong relationship between the two in the context of the Northern Ireland conflict.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2011/0326/1224293118137.html
Author Siri Hustvedt speaks with Hadley Freeman about two public expectations: that her novels should be seen through the prism of autobiography, and she herself, through the prism of her husband, novelist Paul Auster.http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/mar/25/siri-hustvedt-life-fiction
Annemarie Richmond, who works with people with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder plans to publish the Moonkissed series of three graphic novels to help readers understand this invisible disorder. Meet Evalena will be out at the end of April.
http://www2.canada.com/nanaimodailynews/news/story.html?id=6edf08df-771e-496f-a000-cdc1d91db1cb
Henning Mankell speaks with Alison Gzowski about murder, mystery and growing old with Wallander.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/henning-mankell-on-murder-mystery-and-growing-old-with-wallander/article1960494/
BOOKS & WRITERS
A 2010 New York Public Library Cullman Center Fellowship enabled David Bezmozgis to write The Free World at the library. The plot and conflicts are familiar: an excellent and largely unpredictable read.
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/960370--the-free-world-by-david-bezmozgis
Provoked by memories of his father's descent into dementia, Wallender writes down his own version of the story we have just read in The Troubled Man. But Henning Mankell has reached no endpoint for his writing.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-troubled-man-by-henning-mankell-trans-laurie-thompson-2251938.html
The latest additions to Penguin's Extraordinary Canadians series are biographies of Wilfrid Laurier, Canada's first francophone prime minister, Tommy Douglas, and Maurice Richard. Each is eminently worthy of the appellation "extraordinary," writes Tod Hoffman.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Three+helped+shape+Canada/4507329/story.html
Stephen Kelman's first novel Pigeon English deserves its early buzz, writes Emily Donaldson.
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/961823--pigeon-english-by-stephen-kelman
Ruth Brandon's Ugly Beauty explores what the development of cosmetics at L'Oréal and at Helena Rubinstein tells us about the social constructions of beauty. Sometimes beauty is just business.
http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/books/2011/03/28/110328crbo_books_gladwell?currentPage=all
David Finkel's The Good Soldier succeeds by focusing on individuals – just a few likeable, believable men, who seem increasingly baffled by the war they have been asked to fight, writes Judith Rice.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/26/good-soldiers-david-finkel-review
Irene Gammel writes that The Letters of Rosa Luxemburg provides fascinating insight into Luxemburg's courageous and unconventional life. Her (and her comrade's) assassinations symbolized the doom of German's young democracy.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-letters-of-rosa-luxemburg-translated-by-george-shriver/article1956480/
What most people know about the Mahatma is from Ben Kingsley's screen portrayal, says Geoffrey C. Ward. Joseph Lelyveld's Great Soul is not a full-scale biography of Ghandi, but a noteworthy, clear-eyed and nuanced book.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/books/review/book-review-great-soul-mahatma-gandhi-and-his-struggle-with-india-by-joseph-lelyveld.html?nl=books&emc=booksupdateema1&pagewanted=all
The state assembly of Gujarat, where Gandhi was born, has voted to ban the book. Other Indian states are considering a ban.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/30/gujarat-bans-gandhi-book-gay-claims
Mandela is South Africa's Gandhi. Peter Harris's A Just Defiance tells the true story of four ANC fighters and how he, a white human-rights lawyer inspired by Mandela, came to their defence.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/27/just-defiance-peter-harris-review
In his book about the Alice behind the Wonderland, Simon Winchester tells us a good deal about photographic process, Dodgson's family life, and even the rather sad tale of Alice Liddell's later life. But Mark Kingswell wants more.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-alice-behind-wonderland-by-simon-winchester/article1951802/
Paula McLain's The Paris Wife, inspired by the Hemingway memoir A Moveable Feast, focuses on the famous author's courtship, marriage, life in Paris with, and eventual divorce from, Hadley Richardson. McLain's success is reminiscent of Hemingway's early success.
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/958017--paula-mclain-pondering-papa-hemingway
It is not quite the novel we might have hoped for. Hemingway was a great writer, a lousy husband, says Julie Keller.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ae-0306-lit-life-20110305,0,5581971.column
A writer, a psychologist and a survivor read Tiger, Tiger, Margaux Fragoso's memoir of abuse, and asked: What is the point of reading this memoir of abuse?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/27/debate-tiger-tiger-book
In May, New Directions will publish Between Parentheses: Essays, Articles and Speeches (1998–2003) by Roberto Bolaño. The latest issue of the New York Review of Books has a preview: an excerpt of one of those essays.http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2011/mar/22/who-would-dare/
Carolyn Burke's biography of Edith Piaf, No Regrets, is a vivid and thorough portrait of the life of the French icon.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/03/27/2133872/biography-of-edith-piaf-is-thorough.html
In her latest novel, Into the Heart of the Country, Pauline Holdstock explores the relationship between the English fur traders in Churchill, Manitoba, and the native women on whom they relied for their survival.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/into-the-heart-of-the-country-by-pauline-holdstock/article1956353/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
MULTILINGUAL POETRY SLAM
Enjoy a vertiginous display of verbal virtuosity in a daisy-chain translation game penned by poets. Featuring Karen Houle, Fiona Tinwei Lam, George McWhirter, Gary Thomas Morse, Andreas Schroeder, Nilofar Shidmehr and Rhea Tregebov. Saturday, April 2 at 4:30pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at susanna.braund@ubc.ca.
GORDON BITNEY
Author reads from his book Provence Je T'Aime. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey Branch, VPL, 4480 10th Ave. W. For more information, phone 604-665-3982.
BC BOOK PRIZES SOIREE
Meet the finalist authors and have books signed by them, bid on items in the live auction, and celebrate the launch of the 2011 Author Tour program. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. The Listel Hotel, 1300 Robson Street. More information at info@bcbookprizes.ca.
ROBERT SAWYER
Award-winning author reads from Wonder, his final installment of his WWW trilogy. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at 604-331-3603.
JULIANE OKOT BITEK
As part of the Distinguished Visitors Series, the African-Canadian author and poet will give a reading entitled Love and Politics, History and Poetry: An Afternoon Delight. Thursday, April 7 at 3:00pm. Room 130, Fairleight Dickinson University, 842 Cambie. More information or to reserve a spot, visit http://view.fdu.edu/default.aspx?id=8381.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
FRIENDS OF THE VPL RECEPTION
The Friends of the VPL invite all who would like to know more about their work to a reception with current and prospective Friends volunteers, the sitting Friends Board, City Librarian and the manager of bookmark, the Library store. Monday, April 11 at 5:30pm. VPL board room. level 7, Central Branch, 350 W. Georgia Street. To RSVP, phone 604-331-4049 or email friends@friendsofthevpl.ca.
Upcoming
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Celebrate National Poetry Month with an evening of poetry and spoken-word readings featuring Bonnie Nish, Daniela Elza, Ashok Bhargava, Franci Louann and Warren Dean Fulton. Thursday, April 14 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E.. More information at 604-441-0169.
JUSTIN LUKYN
Reading by the author of Henry Pepper. Friday, April 15 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
LIT FEST NEW WEST
Spoken word performances and slam poetry for all ages. Features C.R. Avery. Friday, April 15 at 8:30pm. The Back Room of the Heritage Grill, 447 Columbia Street, New Westminster.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
ANNE PERDUE
Author reads from her short story collection I'm a Registered Nurse Not a Whore. Saturday, April 16 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
FREEHAND BOOKS LAUNCH
Launch of new titles from Kristen den Hartog, Michael Murphy, and Ian Williams. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
125 POETRY READINGS IN ONE DAY
To combat the image of poets as sedentary word-hermits, Ray Hsu, Kim Fu, Kevin Spenst and Andrea Bennett are going to jog through 125 different readings venues in one day. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Readings by Jacob McArthur Mooney, Susan Musgrave and Matt Rader. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
AN EVENING WITH LEE HENDERSON
Join the author for a discussion about his novel The Man Game. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm. Tickets are $20, call 604-733-1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W.
TISH COHEN
Bestselling author reads from her new novel The Truth About Delilah Blue. Tuesday, April 26 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kay rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
AN EVENING WITH THE ARTHURS
Crime Writers of Canada announce the short lists for the Arthur Ellis Award for Canadian Crime Writing, including Best Novel and Best First Novel. Thursday, April 28 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Popular Reading Library at 604-331-3691.
2011 DTES WRITERS' JAMBOREE
Writers' event features mini-manuscript consultations, roundtable discussions, professional skills workshops, and guest author readings by Brian Payton, Evelyn Lau, and Gregory Scofield. Friday, April 29. From 10am to 830pm. Free admission. Carnegie Community Centre, 401 Main Street. More information at www.thewritersstudio.ca.
PLAY CHTHONICS READING SERIES
Readings by Lee Maracle and Wayde Compton. Friday, April 29 at 7:00pm, free. Rhizome Cafe, 317 East Broadway. More information at playchtonics.blogspot.com.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Book News Vol. 6 No. 12
BOOK NEWS
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incite) will feature a multimedia presentation by bestselling author Timothy Taylor, and novelists Gurjinder Basran and Rupinder Gill in conversation with Hal Wake.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, April 6
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/inciteapril6
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
A Dram Come True - May 13, 2011
Presenting the ninth annual single malt scotch whisky sampling. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/dramcometrue
AWARDS & LISTS
The CBC Literary Award winners are announced and include Salt Spring Islander Brian Brett for his poem To Your Scattered Bodies Go.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/literaryawards/2010-awards/
Chinese author Bi Feiyu has won the $30,000 US Man Asian Literary Prize for his novel Three Sisters, set during the Cultural Revolution.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/17/man-asian-prize.html
Peter Forbes has won the 2011 Warwick Prize for Writing for Dazzled and Deceived: Mimicry and Camouflage. The Warwick Prize for Writing is a biennial award open to any genre on a given theme. This year's chosen subject was colour.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/22/us-books-warwickprize-idUSTRE72L6AE20110322
NEWS & FEATURES
The Tyee, by special arrangement with Vancouver Magazine, includes Blood Brothers, a true story in two parts, by Timothy Taylor. Part 1 is here:
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2011/03/10/BloodBrothers/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=140311
Part 2 is here:
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2011/03/11/BloodBrothersTwo/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=140311
Jean Hannah Edelstein has never been a huge fan of the Orange Prize. In fact, she has agreed with A.S. Byatt that it’s sexist. This year, she changed her mind.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/16/women-writers-need-orange-prize-fiction
The Age of Miracles, a debut by American Karen Thompson Walker, is eerily prescient of the Japanese disaster. The book will be published in 2012.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/18/publishers-auction-the-age-of-miracles
The new Granta stokes the Roberto Bolano mystique, writes Ian McGillis.
http://communities.canada.com/montrealgazette/blogs/narratives/archive/2011/03/19/the-new-granta-stokes-the-roberto-bolano-mystique.aspx
Ian McEwan has an idiosyncratic literary voice, writes Nigel Frandale in his interview of McEwan about aging, writing and friendship.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/afterlife+appeal+McEwan/4470920/story.html
Google's controversial plans to create the world's biggest online library have been shelved by a US judge.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/mar/23/google-online-library-plans-thwarted
What does "lending" an e-book mean? Librarians want to know.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/business/media/15libraries.html?src=me&ref=homepage
It's small, light and portable—and it doesn't need charging. So could the new 'flipback' book be the next big thing in publishing?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/20/could-this-kill-kindle
Dan Savage, who launched It Gets Better—a series of videos—for gay youth, has now released a book of essays and stories, also called It Gets Better.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/21/dan-savage-book.html
BOOKS & WRITERS
Dwight Garner writes that Doug Saunders’s first book Arrival City: How the Largest Migration in History Is Reshaping Our World feels as important in its way as was Jane Jacobs’s Death and Life of Great American Cities.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/books/arrival-city-by-doug-saunders-review.html?ref=books
In her review of Joyce Carol Oates’s A Widow’s Story: A Memoir, Janet Todd asks: is Joyce Carol Oates’s memoir of bereavement too raw?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/widows-story-joyce-carol-oates-review
Julian Barnes reminds us that "for sorrow there is no remedy".
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/apr/07/sorrow-there-no-remedy/
Sandra Kasturi finds The Woefield Poultry Collective, Susan Juby's first adult novel, to be charming, funny and heartwarming.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Woefield+Poultry+Collective+Charming+funny+heartwarming/4474339/story.html
A number of works have either been inspired or enlivened by the misdeeds of Kim Philby, John Cairncross, Guy Burgess, Donald Maclean and Anthony Blunt. Charles Cumming’s The Trinity Six posits that there was a sixth double agent.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/books/review/book-review-the-trinity-six-by-charles-cumming.html?nl=books&emc=booksupdateema3
A chance encounter led Lisa Napoli to Bhutan, the remote Himalayan kingdom situated between India and China. Monique Polak writes that readers who lacked patience for Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love will prefer Napoli's book.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/love+affair+with+Bhutan/4469479/story.html
Like James Frey’s novel on the second coming, British author John Niven's novel The Second Coming features Christ returning to earth in contemporary New York—this time, as a struggling musician.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/17/james-frey-second-coming
ScotlandonSunday’s interview with John Niven is here:
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/sos-review/John-Niven-interview-Chip-off.5094672.jp
John Kalbfleisch was hooked on the first page of Sara Wheeler's latest book, The Magnetic North, as Wheeler takes readers on a circumpolar tour.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Exploring+enigmatic+arctic/4469483/story.html
When the Killing's Done, TC Boyle's hectic novel of humans versus nature leaves the reader breathless, writes Ursula K. Le Guin.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/when-killings-done-tc-boyle-review
The dynamic between men and women is played out repeatedly in Lorna Goodison’s new collection By Love Possessed. Men can't be trusted and women can't be trusted to remember this fact.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Tart+glimpses+into+Jamaican+life/4469482/story.html
Sylvia Tyson, one of the strongest female voices in the country, chooses six male protagonists to narrate several sections of Joyner’s Dream. What makes this debut novel soar is her ear, writes T. F. Rigerhof.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/joyners-dream-by-sylvia-tyson/article1947342/
John Barber’s interview of Tyson informs us that several original tunes were written, “music that would naturally occur in the narrative”.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/sylvia-tyson-launches-her-first-novel/article1947301/
Gail Jones' Five Bells is a subtle homage to Virginia Woolf, writes Jem Poster.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/gail-jones-five-bells-review
On August 5, 2010, Chile’s San Jose copper mine collapsed, trapping 33 men underground. James M. Tabor writes that Jonathan Franklin’s 33 Men is rich with revelations.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/jonathan-franklins-33-men-on-the-chilean-mine-collapse/2011/03/07/ABmAw1s_story.html
The grimy streets of Glasgow just after World War II prove fertile ground for crime fiction, not least for Gordon Ferris's The Hanging Shed, the latest addition to Scotland's tradition of fictional sleuths.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/20/hanging-shed-gordon-ferris-thriller-review
The Troubled Man will be Kurt Wallander’s final investigation, says Henning Mankell James Urquhart comments that the quiet inner turmoil that drives the procedurals closes the hugely absorbing Wallander casefile.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-troubled-man-by-henning-mankell-2246880.html
Mankell tells Jon Henley why he is happy to say farewell.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/22/henning-mankell-wallander-troubled-man
A second career is nearly always necessary for those who write books. Ben Ryder Howe chose to open a convenience store. Christine Sismondo describes My Korean Deli as a walk-a-mile-in-another-man’s shoes experiment.
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/952911--my-korean-deli-by-ben-ryder-howe
Katy Guest describes Camilla Gibbs’s The Beauty of Humanity Movement as a “delicious little novel (with) a lot packed into this carefully balanced, delicately spiced novel”.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-beauty-of-humanity-movement-by-camilla-gibb-2246879.html
Janet Maslin writes that, in Anne Roiphe’s latest memoir Art and Madness, she explores her compulsion as a young woman in the 1950s to be a muse to male writers.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/books/anne-roiphes-memoir-art-and-madness-review.html?ref=books
In The Information, James Gleick writes: “Information is what our world runs on: the blood and the fuel, the vital principle.” Reviewer Alex Good adds: “Information...may be fate, but the Internet is not our destiny.”
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/957237--the-information-by-james-gleick
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/books/review/excerpt-the-information-by-james-gleick.html?ref=review
If the true purpose of literary memoirs is to settle scores and put the record straight, Linda Leith’s Writing in the Time of Nationalism, From Two Solitudes to Blue Metropolis is as true as they come, writes Marianne Ackerman.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/writing-in-the-time-of-nationalism-by-linda-leith/article1950121/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
SCIENCE FICTION BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP
Meet and discuss Boneshaker, author Cherie Priest's story of zombies, adventure, and alternate history. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm. The Grind & Gallery (4124 Main). More information at darthbuddy2000@yahoo.ca.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
DEBORAH CAMPBELL AND ANDREAS SCHROEDER
UFV Writer in Residence Elizabeth Bachinsky is pleased to host authors Deborah Campbell and Andreas Schroeder at the University of the Fraser Valley. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies/University House, room F125, University of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford.
IAIN SINCLAIR
British writer and filmmaker reads from his work. Thursday, March 24 at 8:00pm. Tickets: $8 (sliding scale). Spartacus Books, 684 E. Hastings. More information at kimaduff@gmail.com.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
VANCOUVERWRITES FESTIVAL
Meet and support local authors as they read from and sign their books. Features live music. Sunday, March 27 at 6:30pm, free. Tanglewood Books, 1553 W. Broadway.
DENVER/VANCOUVER: 7 POETS
Readings by poets from Denver and Vancouver, including Sommer Browning, Brad Cran, Noah Eli Gordon, Ray Hsu, Christine Leclerc, Nikki Reimer, and Broc Russell, with emcee Jen Currin. Sunday, March 27 at 8:00pm. Tickets: $5 (no one turned away for lack of funds). W2 Storyeum, 151 W. Cordova. More information at jcurrin@vcc.ca.
FERNWOOD BOOKS
Readings and discussions by Kouri T. Keenan and Joan Brockman, authors of Mr. Big: Exposing Undercover Investigations in Canada, and Rebecca Haskell and Brian Burtch, authors of Get That Freak: Homophobia and Transphobia in High Schools. Wednesday, March 30 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
Upcoming
GORDON BITNEY
Author reads from his book Provence Je T'Aime. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey Branch, VPL, 4480 10th Ave. W. For more information, phone 604-665-3982.
ROBERT SAWYER
Award-winning author reads from Wonder, his final installment of his WWW trilogy. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at 604-331-3603.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Celebrate National Poetry Month with an evening of poetry and spoken-word readings featuring Bonnie Nish, Daniela Elza, Ashok Bhargava, Franci Louann and Warren Dean Fulton. Thursday, April 14 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E.. More information at 604-441-0169.
JUSTIN LUKYN
Reading by the author of Henry Pepper. Friday, April 15 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
ANNE PERDUE
Author reads from her short story collection I'm a Registered Nurse Not a Whore. Saturday, April 16 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
FREEHAND BOOKS LAUNCH
Launch of new titles from Kristen den Hartog, Michael Murphy, and Ian Williams. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Readings by Jacob McArthur Mooney, Susan Musgrave and Matt Rader. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
2011 DTES WRITERS' JAMBOREE
Writers' event features mini-manuscript consultations, roundtable discussions, professional skills workshops, and guest author readings by Brian Payton, Evelyn Lau, and Gregory Scofield. Friday, April 29. From 10am to 830pm. Free admission. Carnegie Community Centre, 401 Main Street. More information at www.thewritersstudio.ca.
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incite) will feature a multimedia presentation by bestselling author Timothy Taylor, and novelists Gurjinder Basran and Rupinder Gill in conversation with Hal Wake.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, April 6
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/inciteapril6
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
A Dram Come True - May 13, 2011
Presenting the ninth annual single malt scotch whisky sampling. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/dramcometrue
AWARDS & LISTS
The CBC Literary Award winners are announced and include Salt Spring Islander Brian Brett for his poem To Your Scattered Bodies Go.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/literaryawards/2010-awards/
Chinese author Bi Feiyu has won the $30,000 US Man Asian Literary Prize for his novel Three Sisters, set during the Cultural Revolution.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/17/man-asian-prize.html
Peter Forbes has won the 2011 Warwick Prize for Writing for Dazzled and Deceived: Mimicry and Camouflage. The Warwick Prize for Writing is a biennial award open to any genre on a given theme. This year's chosen subject was colour.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/22/us-books-warwickprize-idUSTRE72L6AE20110322
NEWS & FEATURES
The Tyee, by special arrangement with Vancouver Magazine, includes Blood Brothers, a true story in two parts, by Timothy Taylor. Part 1 is here:
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2011/03/10/BloodBrothers/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=140311
Part 2 is here:
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2011/03/11/BloodBrothersTwo/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=140311
Jean Hannah Edelstein has never been a huge fan of the Orange Prize. In fact, she has agreed with A.S. Byatt that it’s sexist. This year, she changed her mind.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/16/women-writers-need-orange-prize-fiction
The Age of Miracles, a debut by American Karen Thompson Walker, is eerily prescient of the Japanese disaster. The book will be published in 2012.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/18/publishers-auction-the-age-of-miracles
The new Granta stokes the Roberto Bolano mystique, writes Ian McGillis.
http://communities.canada.com/montrealgazette/blogs/narratives/archive/2011/03/19/the-new-granta-stokes-the-roberto-bolano-mystique.aspx
Ian McEwan has an idiosyncratic literary voice, writes Nigel Frandale in his interview of McEwan about aging, writing and friendship.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/afterlife+appeal+McEwan/4470920/story.html
Google's controversial plans to create the world's biggest online library have been shelved by a US judge.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/mar/23/google-online-library-plans-thwarted
What does "lending" an e-book mean? Librarians want to know.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/business/media/15libraries.html?src=me&ref=homepage
It's small, light and portable—and it doesn't need charging. So could the new 'flipback' book be the next big thing in publishing?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/20/could-this-kill-kindle
Dan Savage, who launched It Gets Better—a series of videos—for gay youth, has now released a book of essays and stories, also called It Gets Better.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/21/dan-savage-book.html
BOOKS & WRITERS
Dwight Garner writes that Doug Saunders’s first book Arrival City: How the Largest Migration in History Is Reshaping Our World feels as important in its way as was Jane Jacobs’s Death and Life of Great American Cities.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/books/arrival-city-by-doug-saunders-review.html?ref=books
In her review of Joyce Carol Oates’s A Widow’s Story: A Memoir, Janet Todd asks: is Joyce Carol Oates’s memoir of bereavement too raw?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/widows-story-joyce-carol-oates-review
Julian Barnes reminds us that "for sorrow there is no remedy".
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/apr/07/sorrow-there-no-remedy/
Sandra Kasturi finds The Woefield Poultry Collective, Susan Juby's first adult novel, to be charming, funny and heartwarming.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Woefield+Poultry+Collective+Charming+funny+heartwarming/4474339/story.html
A number of works have either been inspired or enlivened by the misdeeds of Kim Philby, John Cairncross, Guy Burgess, Donald Maclean and Anthony Blunt. Charles Cumming’s The Trinity Six posits that there was a sixth double agent.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/books/review/book-review-the-trinity-six-by-charles-cumming.html?nl=books&emc=booksupdateema3
A chance encounter led Lisa Napoli to Bhutan, the remote Himalayan kingdom situated between India and China. Monique Polak writes that readers who lacked patience for Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love will prefer Napoli's book.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/love+affair+with+Bhutan/4469479/story.html
Like James Frey’s novel on the second coming, British author John Niven's novel The Second Coming features Christ returning to earth in contemporary New York—this time, as a struggling musician.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/17/james-frey-second-coming
ScotlandonSunday’s interview with John Niven is here:
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/sos-review/John-Niven-interview-Chip-off.5094672.jp
John Kalbfleisch was hooked on the first page of Sara Wheeler's latest book, The Magnetic North, as Wheeler takes readers on a circumpolar tour.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Exploring+enigmatic+arctic/4469483/story.html
When the Killing's Done, TC Boyle's hectic novel of humans versus nature leaves the reader breathless, writes Ursula K. Le Guin.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/when-killings-done-tc-boyle-review
The dynamic between men and women is played out repeatedly in Lorna Goodison’s new collection By Love Possessed. Men can't be trusted and women can't be trusted to remember this fact.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Tart+glimpses+into+Jamaican+life/4469482/story.html
Sylvia Tyson, one of the strongest female voices in the country, chooses six male protagonists to narrate several sections of Joyner’s Dream. What makes this debut novel soar is her ear, writes T. F. Rigerhof.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/joyners-dream-by-sylvia-tyson/article1947342/
John Barber’s interview of Tyson informs us that several original tunes were written, “music that would naturally occur in the narrative”.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/sylvia-tyson-launches-her-first-novel/article1947301/
Gail Jones' Five Bells is a subtle homage to Virginia Woolf, writes Jem Poster.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/19/gail-jones-five-bells-review
On August 5, 2010, Chile’s San Jose copper mine collapsed, trapping 33 men underground. James M. Tabor writes that Jonathan Franklin’s 33 Men is rich with revelations.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/jonathan-franklins-33-men-on-the-chilean-mine-collapse/2011/03/07/ABmAw1s_story.html
The grimy streets of Glasgow just after World War II prove fertile ground for crime fiction, not least for Gordon Ferris's The Hanging Shed, the latest addition to Scotland's tradition of fictional sleuths.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/20/hanging-shed-gordon-ferris-thriller-review
The Troubled Man will be Kurt Wallander’s final investigation, says Henning Mankell James Urquhart comments that the quiet inner turmoil that drives the procedurals closes the hugely absorbing Wallander casefile.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-troubled-man-by-henning-mankell-2246880.html
Mankell tells Jon Henley why he is happy to say farewell.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/22/henning-mankell-wallander-troubled-man
A second career is nearly always necessary for those who write books. Ben Ryder Howe chose to open a convenience store. Christine Sismondo describes My Korean Deli as a walk-a-mile-in-another-man’s shoes experiment.
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/952911--my-korean-deli-by-ben-ryder-howe
Katy Guest describes Camilla Gibbs’s The Beauty of Humanity Movement as a “delicious little novel (with) a lot packed into this carefully balanced, delicately spiced novel”.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-beauty-of-humanity-movement-by-camilla-gibb-2246879.html
Janet Maslin writes that, in Anne Roiphe’s latest memoir Art and Madness, she explores her compulsion as a young woman in the 1950s to be a muse to male writers.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/books/anne-roiphes-memoir-art-and-madness-review.html?ref=books
In The Information, James Gleick writes: “Information is what our world runs on: the blood and the fuel, the vital principle.” Reviewer Alex Good adds: “Information...may be fate, but the Internet is not our destiny.”
http://www.thestar.com/news/books/article/957237--the-information-by-james-gleick
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/books/review/excerpt-the-information-by-james-gleick.html?ref=review
If the true purpose of literary memoirs is to settle scores and put the record straight, Linda Leith’s Writing in the Time of Nationalism, From Two Solitudes to Blue Metropolis is as true as they come, writes Marianne Ackerman.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/writing-in-the-time-of-nationalism-by-linda-leith/article1950121/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
SCIENCE FICTION BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP
Meet and discuss Boneshaker, author Cherie Priest's story of zombies, adventure, and alternate history. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm. The Grind & Gallery (4124 Main). More information at darthbuddy2000@yahoo.ca.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
DEBORAH CAMPBELL AND ANDREAS SCHROEDER
UFV Writer in Residence Elizabeth Bachinsky is pleased to host authors Deborah Campbell and Andreas Schroeder at the University of the Fraser Valley. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies/University House, room F125, University of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford.
IAIN SINCLAIR
British writer and filmmaker reads from his work. Thursday, March 24 at 8:00pm. Tickets: $8 (sliding scale). Spartacus Books, 684 E. Hastings. More information at kimaduff@gmail.com.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
VANCOUVERWRITES FESTIVAL
Meet and support local authors as they read from and sign their books. Features live music. Sunday, March 27 at 6:30pm, free. Tanglewood Books, 1553 W. Broadway.
DENVER/VANCOUVER: 7 POETS
Readings by poets from Denver and Vancouver, including Sommer Browning, Brad Cran, Noah Eli Gordon, Ray Hsu, Christine Leclerc, Nikki Reimer, and Broc Russell, with emcee Jen Currin. Sunday, March 27 at 8:00pm. Tickets: $5 (no one turned away for lack of funds). W2 Storyeum, 151 W. Cordova. More information at jcurrin@vcc.ca.
FERNWOOD BOOKS
Readings and discussions by Kouri T. Keenan and Joan Brockman, authors of Mr. Big: Exposing Undercover Investigations in Canada, and Rebecca Haskell and Brian Burtch, authors of Get That Freak: Homophobia and Transphobia in High Schools. Wednesday, March 30 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
Upcoming
GORDON BITNEY
Author reads from his book Provence Je T'Aime. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey Branch, VPL, 4480 10th Ave. W. For more information, phone 604-665-3982.
ROBERT SAWYER
Award-winning author reads from Wonder, his final installment of his WWW trilogy. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at 604-331-3603.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Celebrate National Poetry Month with an evening of poetry and spoken-word readings featuring Bonnie Nish, Daniela Elza, Ashok Bhargava, Franci Louann and Warren Dean Fulton. Thursday, April 14 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E.. More information at 604-441-0169.
JUSTIN LUKYN
Reading by the author of Henry Pepper. Friday, April 15 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
ANNE PERDUE
Author reads from her short story collection I'm a Registered Nurse Not a Whore. Saturday, April 16 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
FREEHAND BOOKS LAUNCH
Launch of new titles from Kristen den Hartog, Michael Murphy, and Ian Williams. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Readings by Jacob McArthur Mooney, Susan Musgrave and Matt Rader. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
2011 DTES WRITERS' JAMBOREE
Writers' event features mini-manuscript consultations, roundtable discussions, professional skills workshops, and guest author readings by Brian Payton, Evelyn Lau, and Gregory Scofield. Friday, April 29. From 10am to 830pm. Free admission. Carnegie Community Centre, 401 Main Street. More information at www.thewritersstudio.ca.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Book News Vol. 6 No. 11
BOOK NEWS
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature Lorna Crozier, Pauline Holdstock and Susan Juby.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 23
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch23
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
A Dram Come True - May 13, 2011
Presenting the ninth annual single malt scotch whisky sampling. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/dramcometrue
AWARDS & LISTS
President Barack Obama presented the 2010 National Medal of Humanities to novelist Joyce Carol Oates earlier this month.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/950702--joyce-carol-oates-books-luminato
Joyce Carol Oates will be reading at Incite on April 20.
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/inciteapril20
Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad has been awarded the US National Books Critics Circle fiction prize.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/11/arts-egan-prize.html
After serving as a judge on the Independent's Foreign Fiction Prize, Boyd Tonkin announced that Latin America is back with a boom. The longlist is here:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/independent-foreign-fiction-prize-latin-america-is-back-with-a-boom-2238068.html
Short story author Deborah Eisenberg has won this year's PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. Previous winners include Philip Roth, John Updike and E.L. Doctorow.
http://www.seattlepi.com/artandlife/1404ap_us_books_pen_faulkner.html
The 2011 International Prize for Arabic Fiction popularly known as the "Arabic Booker" has been split between The Doves' Necklace by Saudi novelist Raja Alem and The Arch and the Butterfly by Moroccan politician, journalist and author Achaari.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/15/arabic-booker-prize-winner
Téa Obreht, Emma Donoghue, Jennifer Egan and Kathleen Winter are four of the twenty writers longlisted for The Orange Prize.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/the-tigers-wife-author-obreht-nominated-for-orange-prize-2242927.html
Britain's Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy has donated the honorarium received for verses written for Prince William's wedding to create a poetry prize named after previous laureate, Ted Hughes.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/the-blaggers-guide-tothe-ted-hughes-award-for-new-work-in-poetry-2240305.html
NEWS & FEATURES
The Vancouver Sun's coverage of the BC Book Prize includes the additional information that some authors will participate in a reading tour at schools, bookstores and libraries throughout B.C. in April.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Book+Prize+short+lists+announced/4422395/story.html
Globe and Mail editors argue in favour of allowing more foreign investment in publishing houses to ensure a robust Canadian publishing industry.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/editorials/why-canlits-next-chapter-should-involve-foreign-investment/article1940682/
Anna Porter notes that, with the changes to the book business, the real question is: What kind of government policies do we need to keep our vital publishing houses functioning?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/time-to-lead-the-shaky-state-of-canadian-book-publishing/article1941700/
31 authors from across the country answer the question: Is Canada a good country in which to live and work as a writer?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/our-authors-speak-up-is-this-country-good-to-its-writers/article1941359/
Taylor Clark's Nerves discusses what it takes to keep cool under pressure, how people deal best with fear, pressure, and stress—and prompts many questions.
http://www.slate.com/id/2287216/
It had been announced that, after 60 years, Hans Falluda's Alone in Berlin would be published in English. Then the original manuscript was discovered—with an additional chapter that changed the story.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/09/chapter-hans-fallada-alone-berlin
James Kidd interviews Manju Kapur, the Jane Austen of modern Anglo-Indian literature, about her new novel, Custody.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/manju-kapur-pride-and-prejudices-2240299.html
A series of unknown poems by Angela Carter, one of Britain's most celebrated authors, was discovered at her former London home after her death.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/13/angela-carter-unpublished-poems-found
New York's Gagosian art gallery will publish James Frey's The Final Testament of the Holy Bible, in which the second coming of Christ takes place in The Bronx projects. The book will be released in time for Easter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/15/james-frey-new-book-published-art-gallery
BOOKS & WRITERS
Michiko Kakutani describes Téa Obreht's debut novel The Tiger's Wife as an audaciously written work providing an indelible picture of life in an unnamed Balkan country still reeling from the fallout of civil war.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/books/the-tigers-wife-by-tea-obreht-book-review.html?ref=books
Kapka Kassabova writes: “Obreht's real journey is back in time, to the difficult times, ...and crippled afterlife of that mythical place once called Yugoslavia.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/tigers-wife-tea-obreht-review
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/books/excerpt-the-tigers-wife-by-tea-obreht.html?ref=books
Seth describes Ben Katchor's The Cardboard Valise as a work of great beauty and eccentricity.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-cardboard-valise-by-ben-katchor/article1938432/
In a related article, Seth deconstructs Katchor's cosmically curious cartoon universe by breaking down three panels from The Cardboard Valise.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/seth-deconstructs-the-cosmically-curious-cartoon-universe-of-ben-katchor/article1938511/
Terrorism, fame, celebrity worship, art vs. commerce—Timothy Taylor skillfully juggles the intimate with the public, the small-scale with the monumental in The Blue Light Project, writes Ian McGillis.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Review+Taylor+Blue+Light+Project/4380039/story.html
David Chau describes The Blue Light Project as a complex novel with the veneer of a thriller.
http://www.straight.com/article-378965/vancouver/book-review-blue-light-project-timothy-taylor
After winning the 2010 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, Michelle Paver has written Dark Matter: A Ghost Story for adults—a book reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft's work, says Christy Ann Conlin.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/dark-matter-a-ghost-story-by-michelle-paver/article1933910/
In this the centenary of Elizabeth Bishop's birth, three titles explore Bishop through her poetry and prose and her correspondence with the New Yorker.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-ca-elizabeth-bishop-20110313,0,7941385.story
Tim Flannery's Here on Earth takes as a given that Darwin must be seen as one of the great figures in the history of science and there is now a quite different way of looking at life.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/here-on-earth-by-tim-flannery-2238060.html
The Somali/Dutch feminist Ayaan Hirsi Ali combines the polemic and narrative strands of her writing to electrifying effect, says Alexander Linklater in his review of Nomad: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/13/hirsi-ali-nomad-personal-journey
Two books deal with media and celebrity, one more successfully than the other: Carl Hiassen's Star Island and Leo Benedictus' The Afterparty.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/fiction-carl-hiaasen
Jonny Steinberg's Little Liberia: An African Odyssey in New York City is an extraordinary mix of reportage, history and biography—and the vagaries of memory.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/little-liberia-jonny-steinberg-review
In his latest work of fiction, Song of Slaves in the Desert, Alan Cheuse has written an ambitious story about slavery with an interesting twist.
http://www.boston.com/ae/books/articles/2011/03/13/an_epic_story_of_jewish_involvement_in_human_bondage/
Even sloppy presentation can't diminish Hanif Kureishi's fierce mind, says Leo Robson of Kureishi's Collected Essays.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/13/hanif-kureishi-collected-essays-review
Kate Taylor notes that Jared Bland's introduction to Finding the Words suggests that writers are artists burdened with a particularly coarse clay. Taylor counters with the thought that many would consider language more gift than burden.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/finding-the-words-writers-on-inspiration-desire-war-celebrity-exile-and-breaking-the-rules-edited-by-jared-bland/article1938717/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
MIRANDA PEARSON
Literature Alive presents poet Miranda Pearson. Monday, March 21 at 7:00pm. Room 1808, Douglas College, New Westminster.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Rhea Tregebov and Cathy Ford. Monday, March 21 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
WILD CARD SLAM
Vancouver poetry house presents the Last Chance Slam for team playoffs. Monday, March 21 at 8:00pm. Cost: $5-$10 sliding scale. Cafe Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive. More information at vancouverpoetryhouse.com.
JEANETTE LYNES
Literature Alive presents poet and novellist Jeannette Lynes. Wednesday March 23 at 7:00pm. Room 3343, Douglas College, New Westminster.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
DEBORAH CAMPBELL AND ANDREAS SCHROEDER
UFV Writer in Residence Elizabeth Bachinsky is pleased to host authors Deborah Campbell and Andreas Schroeder at the University of the Fraser Valley. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies/University House, room F125, University of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
Upcoming
FERNWOOD BOOKS
Readings and discussions by Kouri T. Keenan and Joan Brockman, authors of Mr. Big: Exposing Undercover Investigations in Canada, and Rebecca Haskell and Brian Burtch, authors of Get That Freak: Homophobia and Transphobia in High Schools. Wednesday, March 30 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
GORDON BITNEY
Author reads from his book Provence Je T'Aime. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey Branch, VPL, 4480 10th Ave. W. For more information, phone 604-665-3982.
ROBERT SAWYER
Award-winning author reads from Wonder, his final installment of his WWW trilogy. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at 604-331-3603.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
JUSTIN LUKYN
Reading by the author of Henry Pepper. Friday, April 15 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
ANNE PERDUE
Author reads from her short story collection I'm a Registered Nurse Not a Whore. Saturday, April 16 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
FREEHAND BOOKS LAUNCH
Launch of new titles from Kristen den Hartog, Michael Murphy, and Ian Williams. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Readings by Jacob McArthur Mooney, Susan Musgrave and Matt Rader. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature Lorna Crozier, Pauline Holdstock and Susan Juby.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 23
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch23
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
A Dram Come True - May 13, 2011
Presenting the ninth annual single malt scotch whisky sampling. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/dramcometrue
AWARDS & LISTS
President Barack Obama presented the 2010 National Medal of Humanities to novelist Joyce Carol Oates earlier this month.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/950702--joyce-carol-oates-books-luminato
Joyce Carol Oates will be reading at Incite on April 20.
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/inciteapril20
Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad has been awarded the US National Books Critics Circle fiction prize.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/11/arts-egan-prize.html
After serving as a judge on the Independent's Foreign Fiction Prize, Boyd Tonkin announced that Latin America is back with a boom. The longlist is here:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/independent-foreign-fiction-prize-latin-america-is-back-with-a-boom-2238068.html
Short story author Deborah Eisenberg has won this year's PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. Previous winners include Philip Roth, John Updike and E.L. Doctorow.
http://www.seattlepi.com/artandlife/1404ap_us_books_pen_faulkner.html
The 2011 International Prize for Arabic Fiction popularly known as the "Arabic Booker" has been split between The Doves' Necklace by Saudi novelist Raja Alem and The Arch and the Butterfly by Moroccan politician, journalist and author Achaari.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/15/arabic-booker-prize-winner
Téa Obreht, Emma Donoghue, Jennifer Egan and Kathleen Winter are four of the twenty writers longlisted for The Orange Prize.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/the-tigers-wife-author-obreht-nominated-for-orange-prize-2242927.html
Britain's Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy has donated the honorarium received for verses written for Prince William's wedding to create a poetry prize named after previous laureate, Ted Hughes.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/the-blaggers-guide-tothe-ted-hughes-award-for-new-work-in-poetry-2240305.html
NEWS & FEATURES
The Vancouver Sun's coverage of the BC Book Prize includes the additional information that some authors will participate in a reading tour at schools, bookstores and libraries throughout B.C. in April.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Book+Prize+short+lists+announced/4422395/story.html
Globe and Mail editors argue in favour of allowing more foreign investment in publishing houses to ensure a robust Canadian publishing industry.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/editorials/why-canlits-next-chapter-should-involve-foreign-investment/article1940682/
Anna Porter notes that, with the changes to the book business, the real question is: What kind of government policies do we need to keep our vital publishing houses functioning?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/time-to-lead-the-shaky-state-of-canadian-book-publishing/article1941700/
31 authors from across the country answer the question: Is Canada a good country in which to live and work as a writer?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/our-authors-speak-up-is-this-country-good-to-its-writers/article1941359/
Taylor Clark's Nerves discusses what it takes to keep cool under pressure, how people deal best with fear, pressure, and stress—and prompts many questions.
http://www.slate.com/id/2287216/
It had been announced that, after 60 years, Hans Falluda's Alone in Berlin would be published in English. Then the original manuscript was discovered—with an additional chapter that changed the story.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/09/chapter-hans-fallada-alone-berlin
James Kidd interviews Manju Kapur, the Jane Austen of modern Anglo-Indian literature, about her new novel, Custody.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/manju-kapur-pride-and-prejudices-2240299.html
A series of unknown poems by Angela Carter, one of Britain's most celebrated authors, was discovered at her former London home after her death.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/13/angela-carter-unpublished-poems-found
New York's Gagosian art gallery will publish James Frey's The Final Testament of the Holy Bible, in which the second coming of Christ takes place in The Bronx projects. The book will be released in time for Easter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/15/james-frey-new-book-published-art-gallery
BOOKS & WRITERS
Michiko Kakutani describes Téa Obreht's debut novel The Tiger's Wife as an audaciously written work providing an indelible picture of life in an unnamed Balkan country still reeling from the fallout of civil war.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/books/the-tigers-wife-by-tea-obreht-book-review.html?ref=books
Kapka Kassabova writes: “Obreht's real journey is back in time, to the difficult times, ...and crippled afterlife of that mythical place once called Yugoslavia.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/tigers-wife-tea-obreht-review
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/books/excerpt-the-tigers-wife-by-tea-obreht.html?ref=books
Seth describes Ben Katchor's The Cardboard Valise as a work of great beauty and eccentricity.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-cardboard-valise-by-ben-katchor/article1938432/
In a related article, Seth deconstructs Katchor's cosmically curious cartoon universe by breaking down three panels from The Cardboard Valise.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/seth-deconstructs-the-cosmically-curious-cartoon-universe-of-ben-katchor/article1938511/
Terrorism, fame, celebrity worship, art vs. commerce—Timothy Taylor skillfully juggles the intimate with the public, the small-scale with the monumental in The Blue Light Project, writes Ian McGillis.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Review+Taylor+Blue+Light+Project/4380039/story.html
David Chau describes The Blue Light Project as a complex novel with the veneer of a thriller.
http://www.straight.com/article-378965/vancouver/book-review-blue-light-project-timothy-taylor
After winning the 2010 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, Michelle Paver has written Dark Matter: A Ghost Story for adults—a book reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft's work, says Christy Ann Conlin.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/dark-matter-a-ghost-story-by-michelle-paver/article1933910/
In this the centenary of Elizabeth Bishop's birth, three titles explore Bishop through her poetry and prose and her correspondence with the New Yorker.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-ca-elizabeth-bishop-20110313,0,7941385.story
Tim Flannery's Here on Earth takes as a given that Darwin must be seen as one of the great figures in the history of science and there is now a quite different way of looking at life.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/here-on-earth-by-tim-flannery-2238060.html
The Somali/Dutch feminist Ayaan Hirsi Ali combines the polemic and narrative strands of her writing to electrifying effect, says Alexander Linklater in his review of Nomad: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/13/hirsi-ali-nomad-personal-journey
Two books deal with media and celebrity, one more successfully than the other: Carl Hiassen's Star Island and Leo Benedictus' The Afterparty.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/fiction-carl-hiaasen
Jonny Steinberg's Little Liberia: An African Odyssey in New York City is an extraordinary mix of reportage, history and biography—and the vagaries of memory.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/12/little-liberia-jonny-steinberg-review
In his latest work of fiction, Song of Slaves in the Desert, Alan Cheuse has written an ambitious story about slavery with an interesting twist.
http://www.boston.com/ae/books/articles/2011/03/13/an_epic_story_of_jewish_involvement_in_human_bondage/
Even sloppy presentation can't diminish Hanif Kureishi's fierce mind, says Leo Robson of Kureishi's Collected Essays.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/13/hanif-kureishi-collected-essays-review
Kate Taylor notes that Jared Bland's introduction to Finding the Words suggests that writers are artists burdened with a particularly coarse clay. Taylor counters with the thought that many would consider language more gift than burden.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/finding-the-words-writers-on-inspiration-desire-war-celebrity-exile-and-breaking-the-rules-edited-by-jared-bland/article1938717/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
MIRANDA PEARSON
Literature Alive presents poet Miranda Pearson. Monday, March 21 at 7:00pm. Room 1808, Douglas College, New Westminster.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Rhea Tregebov and Cathy Ford. Monday, March 21 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
WILD CARD SLAM
Vancouver poetry house presents the Last Chance Slam for team playoffs. Monday, March 21 at 8:00pm. Cost: $5-$10 sliding scale. Cafe Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive. More information at vancouverpoetryhouse.com.
JEANETTE LYNES
Literature Alive presents poet and novellist Jeannette Lynes. Wednesday March 23 at 7:00pm. Room 3343, Douglas College, New Westminster.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
DEBORAH CAMPBELL AND ANDREAS SCHROEDER
UFV Writer in Residence Elizabeth Bachinsky is pleased to host authors Deborah Campbell and Andreas Schroeder at the University of the Fraser Valley. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies/University House, room F125, University of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
Upcoming
FERNWOOD BOOKS
Readings and discussions by Kouri T. Keenan and Joan Brockman, authors of Mr. Big: Exposing Undercover Investigations in Canada, and Rebecca Haskell and Brian Burtch, authors of Get That Freak: Homophobia and Transphobia in High Schools. Wednesday, March 30 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
GORDON BITNEY
Author reads from his book Provence Je T'Aime. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. West Point Grey Branch, VPL, 4480 10th Ave. W. For more information, phone 604-665-3982.
ROBERT SAWYER
Award-winning author reads from Wonder, his final installment of his WWW trilogy. Tuesday, April 5 at 7:00pm, free. Meeting room, level 3, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. More information at 604-331-3603.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
JUSTIN LUKYN
Reading by the author of Henry Pepper. Friday, April 15 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
ANNE PERDUE
Author reads from her short story collection I'm a Registered Nurse Not a Whore. Saturday, April 16 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
FREEHAND BOOKS LAUNCH
Launch of new titles from Kristen den Hartog, Michael Murphy, and Ian Williams. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ardeabooksandart.com.
CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Readings by Jacob McArthur Mooney, Susan Musgrave and Matt Rader. Thursday, April 21 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Book News Vol. 6 No. 10
BOOK NEWS
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature Lorna Crozier, Pauline Holdstock and Susan Juby.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 23
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch23
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Jodi Picoult - March 13, 2011
The bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper will read from her new novel, Sing You Home, accompanied by guitarist Ellen Wilber. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/picoult.
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
AWARDS & LISTS
Jack Hodgins, Sarah Leavitt, Doug Coupland, Susan Nielson, Grant Lawrence and Maggie de Vries are among the finalists for various categories of the BC Book Prize. The winners will be announced in April.
http://www.bcbookprizes.ca/winners/2011
Reviews of many of the nominated books are here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/nominees-for-bc-book-prizes-announced/article1935326/
Emma Donoghue's Room has won the regional competition for the Commonwealth Writers Prize. Room is now a contender for the overall Commonwealth Prize, competing against regional winners from Europe and South Asia, Africa, and Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Katrina Best of Montreal was the regional winner in the first book category for her collection of short stories Bird Eat Bird.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/04/commonwealth-prize.html
Jaimy Gordon's Lord of Misrule, which won the U.S. National Book Award for fiction in 2010, is one of five finalists for the PEN/Faulkner Award.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/02/pen-faulkner-award.html
Richard Harris has won the 6th Annual Geist Literal Literary Postcard Contest for Men Gone Mad. Read the story here:
http://www.geist.com/postcard-story/men-gone-mad
Jamie Zeppa‘s Every Time We Say Goodbye has won a place in New Face of Fiction, a program annually highlighting a handful of first-time Canadian novelists. Past New Faces include Ann-Marie MacDonald, Yann Martel, Mary Lawson and Timothy Taylor.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/08/jamie-zeppa-author.html
Canadian novelist Annabel Lyon, American author Howard Norman and Scottish writer Andrew O'Hagan have been named as jurors for the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/entertainment/books/novelist-annabel-lyon-among-jurors-for-2011-scotiabank-giller-prize-117602353.html
NEWS & FEATURES
The Guardian launched a children's book site last week, on World Book Day. The site, curated by young people from all over the world, is here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/childrens-books-site
The New Yorker includes David Foster Wallace's Backbone.
http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/03/07/110307fi_fiction_wallace
British television is currently in the throes of a heady love affair with the book.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2011/mar/02/book-season-bbc-tv
In an interview about his latest book Star Island, Carl Hiassen says that his humour has always come from anger.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/carl-hiaasen-interview
The New Yorker includes Cressida Leyshon's interview of Libyan novelist Hisham Matar—on Libya.
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2011/03/hisham-matar-on-libya-1.html
The Swedish crime-writing duo Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom see their books as part of a social dialogue about crime and how to avoid it.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/meet-the-swedish-crime-writers-not-named-larsson/article1920524/
Singer-songwriter Steve Earle explores life, death and Hank Williams' ghost in his first novel I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-ca-steve-earle-20110306,0,7668951.story
The publishing of chapbooks—pamphlet-sized, glossy and attractive—is making a comeback.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/thenortherner/2011/mar/04/chapbooks-publishing
In a feature article on the art of writing, Hanif Kureishi reveals how to succeed in the worlds of fiction and film.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/the-art-of-writing-hanif-kureishi-reveals-how-to-succeed-in-the-worlds-of-fiction-and-film-2231223.html
Patrick White's last novel was in a pile of papers that his literary executor was instructed to destroy when he died. She disobeyed. Hanging Garden will be published next year, the centenary of his birth.
http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/to-be-published-at-last-the-novel-that-patrick-white-left-hanging-20110228-1bbsd.html
Hans Fallada's Alone in Berlin, published in German 60 years ago, was finally translated into English in 2009 and is now a worldwide publishing phenomenon.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/publishing-penguin
Michel Houellebecq, the bad boy of the literary world, has added songwriting and singing to his repertoire.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/02/michel-houellebecq-makes-sweet-music
A book with entirely blank pages has become a bestseller after becoming a hit with students. Its title: What Every Man Thinks About Apart From Sex.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Blank+page+book+becomes+bestseller+Amazon/4390518/story.html
Despite ebooks' indestructibility, HarperCollins is restricting US libraries to lending ebooks up to 26 times, the average number of loans they claim a print book would survive.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/ebooks-on-borrowed-time
However The Guardian reports that HarperCollins is keen to get app developers working closely with its authors.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/appsblog/2011/mar/08/ebooks-harpercollins-tablets-smartphones-ipad
BOOKS & WRITERS
Jodi Picoult's Sing You Home (which comes with an original CD meant to complement the story) couldn't be more timely, says Marsha Lederman.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/jodi-picoults-new-gay-rights-novel-couldnt-be-more-timely/article1933872/
Barbara Casey describes Timothy Taylor's The Blue Light Project as both a novel of ideas and a page-turner.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/947678--the-blue-light-pr
Peter Darbyshire writes that "With Stanley Park Taylor may have mastered the here, but with The Blue Light Project he's mastered the now."
http://www.theprovince.com/news/Vancouver+writer+goes+global/4391647/story.html
Lucy Caldwell's The Meeting Point, set mainly in the expat community in Bahrain during the run-up to the Iraq war, is compulsively readable, writes Stevie Davies.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/meeting-point-lucy-caldwell-review
Doug Johnstone describes Steve Hely's How I Became a Famous Novelist as "a satire that hurts when you laugh".
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/how-i-became-a-famous-novelist-by-steve-hely-2233426.html
Margaux Fragoso's look at her years as victim of a child abuser is a searing portrait of play-acting, toxic parenting and, yes, love.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/tiger-tiger-by-margaux-fragoso/article1930162/
Margaux Fragoso writes of her relationship with the man who molested her. As adults we "mind our own business". Kathryn Harrison suggests that maybe a book like Tiger, Tiger can help us be a little braver.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Harrison-t.html?ref=books&pagewanted=all
Philosopher David Livingstone Smith argues, in Less Than Human, that dehumanization is necessary for genocide, slavery and slaughter to take hold.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Berreby-t.html?nl=books&emc=booksupdateema3
An excerpt is here:
http://us.macmillan.com/BookCustomPage.aspx?isbn=9780312532727#Excerpt
Bronson Alcott established a communal farm in an effort to create a modern Garden of Eden. Fruitlands is both the tale of a doomed utopia and an intellectual history of the mid-19th century.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/fruitlands-utopia-richard-francis-review
Janine di Giovanni reports that Jonathan Franklin's account of the dramatic rescue of the 33 Chilean miners is gripping.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/06/33-chilean-miners-jonathan-franklin
Chekhov's rule: introduce a rifle in Act I, and it must be fired by Act III is manifest in Michael Frayne's My Father's Fortune, writes Christopher Buckley.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Buckley-t.html?ref=books
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/excerpt-my-fathers-fortune.html?ref=review
In Moonwalking With Einstein, Joshua Foer tackles the subject of memory, placing the mysteries of the brain within a larger philosophical and cultural context.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/books/08book.html?_r=1&hp
The most striking aspect of William Styron's Darkness Visible is just how close it gets in describing the stifling horrors of depression.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/07/illuminating-depression-william-styron
Australian poet Les Murray's Taller When Prone and Killing the Black Dog derive bits of humour from a life of torment.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/books/taller-when-prone-and-killing-the-black-dog-by-les-murray-book-review.html?ref=books
Meg Clothier's The Girl King concerns the daughter of a king of medieval Georgia, without a male heir—Georgia's Elizabeth I. And the plot culminates in a dramatic Armada moment.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-girl-king-by-meg-clothier-2234154.html
Saints and Sinners, Edna O'Brien's new collection of stories is populated by imperfect characters we can all recognize.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/saints-sinners-edna-obrien-review
Kamila Shamsie is gripped by Mirza Waheed's debut novel The Collaborator, and its devastating portrait of Kashmir.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/collaborator-mirza-waheed-review
COMMUNITY EVENTS
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Poetry and spoken word featuring New Westminster Poet Laureate Candice James, Selene Bertelsen, Jemma Downes and Sharon Taylor. Thursday, March 10 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E., Vancouver.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by John Gould and Terence Young. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RACHEL WYATT
Reading and discussion of the author's new novel, Letters to Omar. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=31.
CROSS-BORDER POLLINATION READING SERIES
Readings by Wayde Compton, Sarah Leavitt, Kelli Russell Agodon, Miranda Pearson and Jacqueline Osherow. Saturday, March 12 at 5:00pm. Room 2270, Sauder Industries Policy Room, SFU Harbour Centre, 555 W. Hastings Street.
SUNSHINE COAST ARTS COUNCIL READING SERIES
Rachel Wyatt discusses her new novel, Letters to Omar. Saturday, March 12 at 8:00pm, free. Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, 5714 Medusa, Sechelt. More information at http://www.suncoastarts.com/profiles/scartscouncil/writersseries.html.
CABIN FEVER
Anna Swanson, Bren Simmers and Maleea Acker - three former fire lookouts - read from their debut collections of poetry. Monday, March 14 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
SHORT LINE READING SERIES
This evening will feature several writers who work collaboratively with other writers or involve others in their writing process and work: Christine Leclerc, Shannon Rayne, Warren Dean Fulton, Mariner Janes, and Daniela Elza. Tuesday, March 15 at 6:30pm. The Railway Club, 579 Dunsmuir. For more information, email info@memewaronline.com.
VENTURING BEYOND
Spoken INK presents speculative writers Mary Choo and Sandra Wickham. Tuesday, March 15 at 7:30pm. La Fontana Caffe, 101-3701 East Hastings, Burnaby. More information at www.BurnabyWritersNews.blogspot.com.
PLAY CHTHONICS READING SERIES
Readings by Annharte and Joanne Arnott. Wednesday, March 16 at 7:30pm, free. Graham House, Green College, 6201 Cecil Green Park Road, UBC. More information at playchthonics.blogspot.com.
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
MIRANDA PEARSON
Literature Alive presents poet Miranda Pearson. Monday, March 21 at 7:00pm. Room 1808, Douglas College, New Westminster.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Rhea Tregebov and Cathy Ford. Monday, March 21 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
Upcoming
JEANETTE LYNES
Literature Alive presents poet and novellist Jeannette Lynes. Wednesday March 23 at 7:00pm. Room 3343, Douglas College, New Westminster.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature Lorna Crozier, Pauline Holdstock and Susan Juby.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 23
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch23
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Jodi Picoult - March 13, 2011
The bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper will read from her new novel, Sing You Home, accompanied by guitarist Ellen Wilber. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/picoult.
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
AWARDS & LISTS
Jack Hodgins, Sarah Leavitt, Doug Coupland, Susan Nielson, Grant Lawrence and Maggie de Vries are among the finalists for various categories of the BC Book Prize. The winners will be announced in April.
http://www.bcbookprizes.ca/winners/2011
Reviews of many of the nominated books are here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/nominees-for-bc-book-prizes-announced/article1935326/
Emma Donoghue's Room has won the regional competition for the Commonwealth Writers Prize. Room is now a contender for the overall Commonwealth Prize, competing against regional winners from Europe and South Asia, Africa, and Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Katrina Best of Montreal was the regional winner in the first book category for her collection of short stories Bird Eat Bird.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/04/commonwealth-prize.html
Jaimy Gordon's Lord of Misrule, which won the U.S. National Book Award for fiction in 2010, is one of five finalists for the PEN/Faulkner Award.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/02/pen-faulkner-award.html
Richard Harris has won the 6th Annual Geist Literal Literary Postcard Contest for Men Gone Mad. Read the story here:
http://www.geist.com/postcard-story/men-gone-mad
Jamie Zeppa‘s Every Time We Say Goodbye has won a place in New Face of Fiction, a program annually highlighting a handful of first-time Canadian novelists. Past New Faces include Ann-Marie MacDonald, Yann Martel, Mary Lawson and Timothy Taylor.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/03/08/jamie-zeppa-author.html
Canadian novelist Annabel Lyon, American author Howard Norman and Scottish writer Andrew O'Hagan have been named as jurors for the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/entertainment/books/novelist-annabel-lyon-among-jurors-for-2011-scotiabank-giller-prize-117602353.html
NEWS & FEATURES
The Guardian launched a children's book site last week, on World Book Day. The site, curated by young people from all over the world, is here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/childrens-books-site
The New Yorker includes David Foster Wallace's Backbone.
http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/03/07/110307fi_fiction_wallace
British television is currently in the throes of a heady love affair with the book.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2011/mar/02/book-season-bbc-tv
In an interview about his latest book Star Island, Carl Hiassen says that his humour has always come from anger.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/carl-hiaasen-interview
The New Yorker includes Cressida Leyshon's interview of Libyan novelist Hisham Matar—on Libya.
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2011/03/hisham-matar-on-libya-1.html
The Swedish crime-writing duo Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom see their books as part of a social dialogue about crime and how to avoid it.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/meet-the-swedish-crime-writers-not-named-larsson/article1920524/
Singer-songwriter Steve Earle explores life, death and Hank Williams' ghost in his first novel I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-ca-steve-earle-20110306,0,7668951.story
The publishing of chapbooks—pamphlet-sized, glossy and attractive—is making a comeback.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/thenortherner/2011/mar/04/chapbooks-publishing
In a feature article on the art of writing, Hanif Kureishi reveals how to succeed in the worlds of fiction and film.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/the-art-of-writing-hanif-kureishi-reveals-how-to-succeed-in-the-worlds-of-fiction-and-film-2231223.html
Patrick White's last novel was in a pile of papers that his literary executor was instructed to destroy when he died. She disobeyed. Hanging Garden will be published next year, the centenary of his birth.
http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/to-be-published-at-last-the-novel-that-patrick-white-left-hanging-20110228-1bbsd.html
Hans Fallada's Alone in Berlin, published in German 60 years ago, was finally translated into English in 2009 and is now a worldwide publishing phenomenon.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/publishing-penguin
Michel Houellebecq, the bad boy of the literary world, has added songwriting and singing to his repertoire.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/02/michel-houellebecq-makes-sweet-music
A book with entirely blank pages has become a bestseller after becoming a hit with students. Its title: What Every Man Thinks About Apart From Sex.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Blank+page+book+becomes+bestseller+Amazon/4390518/story.html
Despite ebooks' indestructibility, HarperCollins is restricting US libraries to lending ebooks up to 26 times, the average number of loans they claim a print book would survive.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/ebooks-on-borrowed-time
However The Guardian reports that HarperCollins is keen to get app developers working closely with its authors.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/appsblog/2011/mar/08/ebooks-harpercollins-tablets-smartphones-ipad
BOOKS & WRITERS
Jodi Picoult's Sing You Home (which comes with an original CD meant to complement the story) couldn't be more timely, says Marsha Lederman.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/jodi-picoults-new-gay-rights-novel-couldnt-be-more-timely/article1933872/
Barbara Casey describes Timothy Taylor's The Blue Light Project as both a novel of ideas and a page-turner.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/947678--the-blue-light-pr
Peter Darbyshire writes that "With Stanley Park Taylor may have mastered the here, but with The Blue Light Project he's mastered the now."
http://www.theprovince.com/news/Vancouver+writer+goes+global/4391647/story.html
Lucy Caldwell's The Meeting Point, set mainly in the expat community in Bahrain during the run-up to the Iraq war, is compulsively readable, writes Stevie Davies.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/meeting-point-lucy-caldwell-review
Doug Johnstone describes Steve Hely's How I Became a Famous Novelist as "a satire that hurts when you laugh".
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/how-i-became-a-famous-novelist-by-steve-hely-2233426.html
Margaux Fragoso's look at her years as victim of a child abuser is a searing portrait of play-acting, toxic parenting and, yes, love.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/tiger-tiger-by-margaux-fragoso/article1930162/
Margaux Fragoso writes of her relationship with the man who molested her. As adults we "mind our own business". Kathryn Harrison suggests that maybe a book like Tiger, Tiger can help us be a little braver.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Harrison-t.html?ref=books&pagewanted=all
Philosopher David Livingstone Smith argues, in Less Than Human, that dehumanization is necessary for genocide, slavery and slaughter to take hold.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Berreby-t.html?nl=books&emc=booksupdateema3
An excerpt is here:
http://us.macmillan.com/BookCustomPage.aspx?isbn=9780312532727#Excerpt
Bronson Alcott established a communal farm in an effort to create a modern Garden of Eden. Fruitlands is both the tale of a doomed utopia and an intellectual history of the mid-19th century.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/06/fruitlands-utopia-richard-francis-review
Janine di Giovanni reports that Jonathan Franklin's account of the dramatic rescue of the 33 Chilean miners is gripping.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/06/33-chilean-miners-jonathan-franklin
Chekhov's rule: introduce a rifle in Act I, and it must be fired by Act III is manifest in Michael Frayne's My Father's Fortune, writes Christopher Buckley.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/Buckley-t.html?ref=books
An excerpt is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/books/review/excerpt-my-fathers-fortune.html?ref=review
In Moonwalking With Einstein, Joshua Foer tackles the subject of memory, placing the mysteries of the brain within a larger philosophical and cultural context.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/books/08book.html?_r=1&hp
The most striking aspect of William Styron's Darkness Visible is just how close it gets in describing the stifling horrors of depression.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2011/mar/07/illuminating-depression-william-styron
Australian poet Les Murray's Taller When Prone and Killing the Black Dog derive bits of humour from a life of torment.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/books/taller-when-prone-and-killing-the-black-dog-by-les-murray-book-review.html?ref=books
Meg Clothier's The Girl King concerns the daughter of a king of medieval Georgia, without a male heir—Georgia's Elizabeth I. And the plot culminates in a dramatic Armada moment.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-girl-king-by-meg-clothier-2234154.html
Saints and Sinners, Edna O'Brien's new collection of stories is populated by imperfect characters we can all recognize.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/saints-sinners-edna-obrien-review
Kamila Shamsie is gripped by Mirza Waheed's debut novel The Collaborator, and its devastating portrait of Kashmir.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/05/collaborator-mirza-waheed-review
COMMUNITY EVENTS
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Poetry and spoken word featuring New Westminster Poet Laureate Candice James, Selene Bertelsen, Jemma Downes and Sharon Taylor. Thursday, March 10 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E., Vancouver.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by John Gould and Terence Young. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RACHEL WYATT
Reading and discussion of the author's new novel, Letters to Omar. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=31.
CROSS-BORDER POLLINATION READING SERIES
Readings by Wayde Compton, Sarah Leavitt, Kelli Russell Agodon, Miranda Pearson and Jacqueline Osherow. Saturday, March 12 at 5:00pm. Room 2270, Sauder Industries Policy Room, SFU Harbour Centre, 555 W. Hastings Street.
SUNSHINE COAST ARTS COUNCIL READING SERIES
Rachel Wyatt discusses her new novel, Letters to Omar. Saturday, March 12 at 8:00pm, free. Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, 5714 Medusa, Sechelt. More information at http://www.suncoastarts.com/profiles/scartscouncil/writersseries.html.
CABIN FEVER
Anna Swanson, Bren Simmers and Maleea Acker - three former fire lookouts - read from their debut collections of poetry. Monday, March 14 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
SHORT LINE READING SERIES
This evening will feature several writers who work collaboratively with other writers or involve others in their writing process and work: Christine Leclerc, Shannon Rayne, Warren Dean Fulton, Mariner Janes, and Daniela Elza. Tuesday, March 15 at 6:30pm. The Railway Club, 579 Dunsmuir. For more information, email info@memewaronline.com.
VENTURING BEYOND
Spoken INK presents speculative writers Mary Choo and Sandra Wickham. Tuesday, March 15 at 7:30pm. La Fontana Caffe, 101-3701 East Hastings, Burnaby. More information at www.BurnabyWritersNews.blogspot.com.
PLAY CHTHONICS READING SERIES
Readings by Annharte and Joanne Arnott. Wednesday, March 16 at 7:30pm, free. Graham House, Green College, 6201 Cecil Green Park Road, UBC. More information at playchthonics.blogspot.com.
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
MIRANDA PEARSON
Literature Alive presents poet Miranda Pearson. Monday, March 21 at 7:00pm. Room 1808, Douglas College, New Westminster.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Rhea Tregebov and Cathy Ford. Monday, March 21 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
Upcoming
JEANETTE LYNES
Literature Alive presents poet and novellist Jeannette Lynes. Wednesday March 23 at 7:00pm. Room 3343, Douglas College, New Westminster.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
PEARLS LAUNCH
Douglas College's Creative Writing Department is pleased to launch the 30th issue of Pearls, a yearly student anthology. Friday, March 25 at 7:00pm. Studio Theatre, Room 4140, Douglas College, New Westminster.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
PEN-IN-HAND
Poetry and prose reading featuring Walk Myself Home: An Anthology to End Violence Against Women, with Janet Marie Rogers, Arleen Paré, Rhonda Ganz and other contributors to the book. Monday, April 18 at 7:30pm. Cost: $3. Serious Coffee, 230 Cook Street, Victoria.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Book News Vol. 6 No. 9
BOOK NEWS
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature John Burns interviewing Dianne Warren, as well as readings by Evelyn Lau and Aurian Haller.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 9
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch9
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Jodi Picoult - March 13, 2011
The bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper will read from her new novel, Sing You Home, accompanied by guitarist Ellen Wilber. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/picoult.
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
AWARDS & LISTS
The winner of the 2011 Lionel Gelber Prize is Shelagh D. Grant, Canada's leading authority on Arctic history, for her book Polar Imperative: A History of Arctic Sovereignty in North America, published by Douglas & McIntyre.
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2011/01/c6890.html
Three B. C. poets are finalists for the Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers, a literary award designed to highlight promising young talent: Raoul Fernandes, of Vancouver, and Garth Martens and Anne-Marie Turza, both of Victoria. The winner will be announced in April.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/01/bronwen-wallace-prize.html
Brian Brett and Leslie Beckmann are among the six West Coast finalists for the 2010 CBC Literary Awards.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/West+Coast+writers+make+short+list/4370597/story.html
Readers in the CBC Book Club have voted for their favourite books in the inaugural CBC Book Club Awards. There are 16 Bookie categories and Zsuzsi Gartner, Sarah Leavitt and Billie Livingston are among the sixteen winners of Bookie Beavers.
http://www.cbc.ca/books/bookclub/2011/02/the-cbc-bookies-winners-revealed.html
NEWS & FEATURES
Five hundred free copies of Judy Fong Bates' Midnight at the Dragon Café were handed out Monday on a Toronto streetcar, for this year's Keep Toronto Reading One Book campaign.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/944392--one-book-rides-the-rocket
To celebrate year 15 of 'Poetry in Transit,' The Tyee offers some locally sourced verse you could be reading while riding.
http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2011/02/23/MissedTheBus/
20,000 passionate book lovers will give away 1,000,000 books (including three Canadians' works) to members of the public across the UK and Ireland on the inaugural World Book Night on Saturday 5 March 2011.
http://www.worldbooknight.org/2010/12/the-largest-book-give-away-ever-attempted/
It's more than half a century since Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl landed like a bombshell in the staid world of 1950s America. But what was the poet really like? Friends and colleagues remember him.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/23/allen-ginsberg-howl-poem-film
We have heard of journalists becoming novelists, but not the other way around. Libyan Hisham Matar, most recently author of Anatomy of a Disappearance, has transformed his London flat into a newsroom.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/24/libya-gaddafi-protesters-news-blackout
Eighty-five boxes of manuscripts, long kept in a Cornish barn, are the first batch of a vast literary archive that John le Carré has given to the Bodleian library, Oxford.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/23/john-le-carre-archive-bodleian
A panel of judges read many debut novels for a BBC television show, identified twelve new novelists and developed a new respect for creative writing courses.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/25/literary-fiction-twelve-best-new-novelists
A newly translated Russian novel retells Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings from the perspective of the bad guys. The Last Ring-Bearer tells the story of Middle-earth according to Mordor.
http://www.salon.com/books/laura_miller/2011/02/15/last_ringbearer/index.html
The estate of JRR Tolkien is embroiled in a fierce legal battle over an American novel that uses the author of The Lord of the Rings as a central character.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/mirkwood-jrr-tolkien-legal-battle
Wang Xiaofang's novels are known as "officialdom fiction". The author exposes the shady world but readers buy his books for tips for becoming government officials. Penguin will publish A Civil Servant's Notebook in translation later this year.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/25/wang-xiaofang-exposes-chinese-bureaucracy
There is a sharp increase in the number of crime writers in Canada. Ian Hamilton is one, now writing the sixth book in his series featuring Toronto-based, Chinese-Canadian forensic accountant Ava Lee.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/945476--ian-hamilton-leading-a-canadian-crime-wave
Moacyr Scliar, the Brazilian writer whose novel Max and the Cats Yann Martel cites as inspiration for Life of Pi, has died, aged 73.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/02/28/moacyr-scliar-obit.html
Marsha Lederman interviews Timothy Taylor on The Blue Light Project, and on the meaning of his decision to set this book in a place that is neither named nor identified.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/vancouvers-timothy-taylor-goes-global/article1920705/singlepage/#articlecontent
A number of previously banned books have now returned to the shelves in Tunisia and Egypt.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/28/banned-books-return-egypt-tunisia
Furious librarians are calling for a boycott of publisher HarperCollins over its decision to put a limit on the number of times its ebooks can be loaned.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/01/restrictions-library-ebook-loans
BOOKS & WRITERS
Topical fiction can sometimes be trumped by the day's headlines, writes Boyd Tonkin. Justin Cartwright's Other People's Money on the financial meltdown and the misdeeds of bankers reminds us that high finance is built on the shifting sands of fiction.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/from-a-crisis-to-a-drama-how-justin-cartwright-turned-the-banking-panic-into-fiction-2224508.html
Elena Mauli's 13 rue Thérèse is based on some items in a box of mementos which the author has carried since she was very young.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-book-13-rue-therese-20110225,0,4800240.story
Peter Behrens describes Carsten Jensen's We, The Drowned—almost 700 pages of interwoven stories covering a period of 100 years—as a gorgeous, unsparing novel.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/21/AR2011022104508.html
Hermione Lee writes that Hasham Matar's Anatomy of a Disappearance, as with his earlier Booker-nominated In the Country of Men, is filled with absence and longing, powerfully depicted.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/anatomy-disappearance-hisham-matar-review
The New Yorker includes Naima, a short story by Hasham Matar.
http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/01/24/110124fi_fiction_matar
Stephen Abell reviews four books on the work of J. M. Coetzee—and the limits of sympathy.
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/the_tls/article7172118.ece
Mary Hoffman is won over by the unusual love story at the heart of Sita Brahmachari‘s Artichoke Hearts. This YA story concerns the author's daughter and her own mother-in-law, as well as a boy/girl romance in the background.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/artichoke-hearts-sita-brahmachari-childrens-review
Dave Eggars' Zeitoun is a superlative account of the real-life experience of a victim of Hurricane Katrina. Abdulrahman Zeitoun and his wife Kathy's tales are almost too horrific for fiction, writes Lesley McDowell.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/zeitoun-by-dave-eggers-2226602.html
Rebecca Hunt's debut novel Mr. Chartwell is as delicious as it is audacious, writes Julie Wittes Schlack. Chartwell is Winston Churchill's ‘black dog of depression' visible only to Churchill and to Chartwell's landlady.
http://www.boston.com/ae/books/articles/2011/02/23/a_vivid_battle_with_the_black_dog_of_depression/
Nancy Wigston calls this a "stunner of a debut".
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/943882--mr-chartwell-by-rebecca-hunt
Tatiana De Rosnay's A Secret Kept continues her interest in Parisian high society through this tale of the secrets of a particular family.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/a-secret-that-goes-down-smoothly/article1925447/
James Bartleman's historical novel, As Long as the Rivers Flow, focuses on the consequences of Canada's residential school system—and concludes with hope, writes Maggie de Vries.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-midwife-of-venice-by-roberta-rich/article1920568/
Adele Logan Alexander's Parallel Worlds: The Remarkable Gibbs-Hunts and the Enduring (In)Significance of Melanin brings to our attention a remarkable family's saga from birth in Victoria, B.C. up to the civil rights era.
http://thetyee.ca/Books/2011/02/28/BornBlackinVic/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=280211
Michiko Kakutani writes that Jeff Greenfield's Then Everything Changed is a riveting book on three small-scale and plausible what-ifs "that came within a whisker of actually happening."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/books/01book.html?ref=books
Candace Fertile writes that the short pieces in Richard Wagamese's One Story, One Song remind us of human beings' place in the world and of our connectedness.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/one-story-one-song-by-richard-wagamese/article1923711/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Billeh Nickerson and Daniel Zomparelli. Thursday, March 3 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
DAVID J. SMITH
Launch of the author's new book This Child Every Child: A Picture Book for Children About the Rights of Children. Friday, March 4 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=34.
VANCOUVER WOMEN READ
As part of the W2 Utopia Festival, readings by Hannah Calder, Hiromi Goto, Kim Fu, Antionette Rea and Christie Lee Charles. Saturday, March 5 at 8:00pm. For tickets and complete information, visit http://ow.ly/45Sr0.
MADELEINE IS...
The National Film Board of Canada, and poet Colin Browne present the rarely seen made-in-Vancouver feature film Madeleine Is...(1971). Preceded by Don Owen's Notes for a Film About Donna and Gail (1966). Sunday, March 6 at 2:30pm. The Waldorf Hotel, 1489 East Hastings. More information at www.waldorfhotel.com.
YARN BOMBING
Yarn Bombing (the art of crochet and knit graffiti) at Historic Joy Kogawa House, 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver. Help stitch knitted blossoms in place on the Kogawa cherry tree (whose story is told in Joy Kogawa's book Naomi's Tree) on Sunday, March 6, 2 to 3:30pm. More details: http://www.kogawahouse.com/node/251.
VANCOUVER POETRY SLAM
Van Slam featuring Alessandra Naccarato. Monday, March 7 at 8:00pm. Cover charge: $5-10 sliding scale. Cafe Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive. More information at vancouverpoetryhouse.com.
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Poetry and spoken word featuring New Westminster Poet Laureate Candice James, Selene Bertelsen, Jemma Downes and Sharon Taylor. Thursday, March 10 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E., Vancouver.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by John Gould and Terence Young. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RACHEL WYATT
Reading and discussion of the author's new novel, Letters to Omar. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=31.
SUNSHINE COAST ARTS COUNCIL READING SERIES
Rachel Wyatt discusses her new novel, Letters to Omar. Saturday, March 12 at 8:00pm, free. Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, 5714 Medusa, Sechelt. More information at http://www.suncoastarts.com/profiles/scartscouncil/writersseries.html.
CABIN FEVER
Anna Swanson, Bren Simmers and Maleea Acker - three former fire lookouts - read from their debut collections of poetry. Monday, March 14 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
Upcoming
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
Incite @ VPL
The next installment of Incite (http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/readingseries) will feature John Burns interviewing Dianne Warren, as well as readings by Evelyn Lau and Aurian Haller.
7:30 pm on Wednesday, March 9
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/incitemarch9
Admission is free
Alice MacKay room, Central Library
Let us know you're coming by registering here, http://incitevpl.eventbrite.com. Please note that registration is so that we know how many people to expect. Admission on the night is always on a first-come-first-served basis.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Jodi Picoult - March 13, 2011
The bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper will read from her new novel, Sing You Home, accompanied by guitarist Ellen Wilber. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/picoult.
Howard Jacobson - April 13, 2011
(2010 Man Booker award winner)
The Finkler Question is a scorching story of friendship and loss, exclusion and belonging, and of the wisdom and humanity of maturity. Funny, furious, unflinching, this extraordinary novel shows one of our finest writers at his brilliant best. Presented in partnership with the Jewish Book Festival. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/jacobson.
Simon Winchester - April 18, 2011
The bestselling author of Krakatoa, returns to the natural world with his epic new book, a "biography" of the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/winchester.
Elizabeth Hay & Miriam Toews - May 5, 2011
Two of Canada's most acclaimed and beloved writers will discuss their new books, Alone in the Classroom and Irma Voth. Details: http://www.writersfest.bc.ca/events/haytoews.
AWARDS & LISTS
The winner of the 2011 Lionel Gelber Prize is Shelagh D. Grant, Canada's leading authority on Arctic history, for her book Polar Imperative: A History of Arctic Sovereignty in North America, published by Douglas & McIntyre.
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2011/01/c6890.html
Three B. C. poets are finalists for the Bronwen Wallace Award for Emerging Writers, a literary award designed to highlight promising young talent: Raoul Fernandes, of Vancouver, and Garth Martens and Anne-Marie Turza, both of Victoria. The winner will be announced in April.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/03/01/bronwen-wallace-prize.html
Brian Brett and Leslie Beckmann are among the six West Coast finalists for the 2010 CBC Literary Awards.
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/West+Coast+writers+make+short+list/4370597/story.html
Readers in the CBC Book Club have voted for their favourite books in the inaugural CBC Book Club Awards. There are 16 Bookie categories and Zsuzsi Gartner, Sarah Leavitt and Billie Livingston are among the sixteen winners of Bookie Beavers.
http://www.cbc.ca/books/bookclub/2011/02/the-cbc-bookies-winners-revealed.html
NEWS & FEATURES
Five hundred free copies of Judy Fong Bates' Midnight at the Dragon Café were handed out Monday on a Toronto streetcar, for this year's Keep Toronto Reading One Book campaign.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/944392--one-book-rides-the-rocket
To celebrate year 15 of 'Poetry in Transit,' The Tyee offers some locally sourced verse you could be reading while riding.
http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2011/02/23/MissedTheBus/
20,000 passionate book lovers will give away 1,000,000 books (including three Canadians' works) to members of the public across the UK and Ireland on the inaugural World Book Night on Saturday 5 March 2011.
http://www.worldbooknight.org/2010/12/the-largest-book-give-away-ever-attempted/
It's more than half a century since Allen Ginsberg's poem Howl landed like a bombshell in the staid world of 1950s America. But what was the poet really like? Friends and colleagues remember him.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/23/allen-ginsberg-howl-poem-film
We have heard of journalists becoming novelists, but not the other way around. Libyan Hisham Matar, most recently author of Anatomy of a Disappearance, has transformed his London flat into a newsroom.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/24/libya-gaddafi-protesters-news-blackout
Eighty-five boxes of manuscripts, long kept in a Cornish barn, are the first batch of a vast literary archive that John le Carré has given to the Bodleian library, Oxford.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/23/john-le-carre-archive-bodleian
A panel of judges read many debut novels for a BBC television show, identified twelve new novelists and developed a new respect for creative writing courses.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/25/literary-fiction-twelve-best-new-novelists
A newly translated Russian novel retells Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings from the perspective of the bad guys. The Last Ring-Bearer tells the story of Middle-earth according to Mordor.
http://www.salon.com/books/laura_miller/2011/02/15/last_ringbearer/index.html
The estate of JRR Tolkien is embroiled in a fierce legal battle over an American novel that uses the author of The Lord of the Rings as a central character.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/mirkwood-jrr-tolkien-legal-battle
Wang Xiaofang's novels are known as "officialdom fiction". The author exposes the shady world but readers buy his books for tips for becoming government officials. Penguin will publish A Civil Servant's Notebook in translation later this year.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/25/wang-xiaofang-exposes-chinese-bureaucracy
There is a sharp increase in the number of crime writers in Canada. Ian Hamilton is one, now writing the sixth book in his series featuring Toronto-based, Chinese-Canadian forensic accountant Ava Lee.
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/945476--ian-hamilton-leading-a-canadian-crime-wave
Moacyr Scliar, the Brazilian writer whose novel Max and the Cats Yann Martel cites as inspiration for Life of Pi, has died, aged 73.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/books/story/2011/02/28/moacyr-scliar-obit.html
Marsha Lederman interviews Timothy Taylor on The Blue Light Project, and on the meaning of his decision to set this book in a place that is neither named nor identified.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/vancouvers-timothy-taylor-goes-global/article1920705/singlepage/#articlecontent
A number of previously banned books have now returned to the shelves in Tunisia and Egypt.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/28/banned-books-return-egypt-tunisia
Furious librarians are calling for a boycott of publisher HarperCollins over its decision to put a limit on the number of times its ebooks can be loaned.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/01/restrictions-library-ebook-loans
BOOKS & WRITERS
Topical fiction can sometimes be trumped by the day's headlines, writes Boyd Tonkin. Justin Cartwright's Other People's Money on the financial meltdown and the misdeeds of bankers reminds us that high finance is built on the shifting sands of fiction.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/from-a-crisis-to-a-drama-how-justin-cartwright-turned-the-banking-panic-into-fiction-2224508.html
Elena Mauli's 13 rue Thérèse is based on some items in a box of mementos which the author has carried since she was very young.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-book-13-rue-therese-20110225,0,4800240.story
Peter Behrens describes Carsten Jensen's We, The Drowned—almost 700 pages of interwoven stories covering a period of 100 years—as a gorgeous, unsparing novel.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/21/AR2011022104508.html
Hermione Lee writes that Hasham Matar's Anatomy of a Disappearance, as with his earlier Booker-nominated In the Country of Men, is filled with absence and longing, powerfully depicted.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/anatomy-disappearance-hisham-matar-review
The New Yorker includes Naima, a short story by Hasham Matar.
http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/01/24/110124fi_fiction_matar
Stephen Abell reviews four books on the work of J. M. Coetzee—and the limits of sympathy.
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/the_tls/article7172118.ece
Mary Hoffman is won over by the unusual love story at the heart of Sita Brahmachari‘s Artichoke Hearts. This YA story concerns the author's daughter and her own mother-in-law, as well as a boy/girl romance in the background.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/feb/26/artichoke-hearts-sita-brahmachari-childrens-review
Dave Eggars' Zeitoun is a superlative account of the real-life experience of a victim of Hurricane Katrina. Abdulrahman Zeitoun and his wife Kathy's tales are almost too horrific for fiction, writes Lesley McDowell.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/zeitoun-by-dave-eggers-2226602.html
Rebecca Hunt's debut novel Mr. Chartwell is as delicious as it is audacious, writes Julie Wittes Schlack. Chartwell is Winston Churchill's ‘black dog of depression' visible only to Churchill and to Chartwell's landlady.
http://www.boston.com/ae/books/articles/2011/02/23/a_vivid_battle_with_the_black_dog_of_depression/
Nancy Wigston calls this a "stunner of a debut".
http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/article/943882--mr-chartwell-by-rebecca-hunt
Tatiana De Rosnay's A Secret Kept continues her interest in Parisian high society through this tale of the secrets of a particular family.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/a-secret-that-goes-down-smoothly/article1925447/
James Bartleman's historical novel, As Long as the Rivers Flow, focuses on the consequences of Canada's residential school system—and concludes with hope, writes Maggie de Vries.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/the-midwife-of-venice-by-roberta-rich/article1920568/
Adele Logan Alexander's Parallel Worlds: The Remarkable Gibbs-Hunts and the Enduring (In)Significance of Melanin brings to our attention a remarkable family's saga from birth in Victoria, B.C. up to the civil rights era.
http://thetyee.ca/Books/2011/02/28/BornBlackinVic/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=280211
Michiko Kakutani writes that Jeff Greenfield's Then Everything Changed is a riveting book on three small-scale and plausible what-ifs "that came within a whisker of actually happening."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/books/01book.html?ref=books
Candace Fertile writes that the short pieces in Richard Wagamese's One Story, One Song remind us of human beings' place in the world and of our connectedness.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/one-story-one-song-by-richard-wagamese/article1923711/
COMMUNITY EVENTS
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Billeh Nickerson and Daniel Zomparelli. Thursday, March 3 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
DAVID J. SMITH
Launch of the author's new book This Child Every Child: A Picture Book for Children About the Rights of Children. Friday, March 4 at 6:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=34.
VANCOUVER WOMEN READ
As part of the W2 Utopia Festival, readings by Hannah Calder, Hiromi Goto, Kim Fu, Antionette Rea and Christie Lee Charles. Saturday, March 5 at 8:00pm. For tickets and complete information, visit http://ow.ly/45Sr0.
MADELEINE IS...
The National Film Board of Canada, and poet Colin Browne present the rarely seen made-in-Vancouver feature film Madeleine Is...(1971). Preceded by Don Owen's Notes for a Film About Donna and Gail (1966). Sunday, March 6 at 2:30pm. The Waldorf Hotel, 1489 East Hastings. More information at www.waldorfhotel.com.
YARN BOMBING
Yarn Bombing (the art of crochet and knit graffiti) at Historic Joy Kogawa House, 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver. Help stitch knitted blossoms in place on the Kogawa cherry tree (whose story is told in Joy Kogawa's book Naomi's Tree) on Sunday, March 6, 2 to 3:30pm. More details: http://www.kogawahouse.com/node/251.
VANCOUVER POETRY SLAM
Van Slam featuring Alessandra Naccarato. Monday, March 7 at 8:00pm. Cover charge: $5-10 sliding scale. Cafe Deux Soleils, 2096 Commercial Drive. More information at vancouverpoetryhouse.com.
POETRY AROUND THE WORLD
Poetry and spoken word featuring New Westminster Poet Laureate Candice James, Selene Bertelsen, Jemma Downes and Sharon Taylor. Thursday, March 10 at 6:30pm, free. Renfrew Public Library, 2969 22nd Ave. E., Vancouver.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by John Gould and Terence Young. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RACHEL WYATT
Reading and discussion of the author's new novel, Letters to Omar. Thursday, March 10 at 7:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at http://ardeabooksandart.com/event/?event_id=31.
SUNSHINE COAST ARTS COUNCIL READING SERIES
Rachel Wyatt discusses her new novel, Letters to Omar. Saturday, March 12 at 8:00pm, free. Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, 5714 Medusa, Sechelt. More information at http://www.suncoastarts.com/profiles/scartscouncil/writersseries.html.
CABIN FEVER
Anna Swanson, Bren Simmers and Maleea Acker - three former fire lookouts - read from their debut collections of poetry. Monday, March 14 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.
Upcoming
TWISTED POETS LITERARY SALON
Features Donato Mancini and Jess Hill. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $5 suggested donation at the door. The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street. For more information, email blinsh_pandoras@yahoo.ca.
CAROLINE ADDERSON
Join author Caroline Adderson for a discussion about her novel The Sky is Falling. Part book club, part literary reading, the event includes wine, light refreshments and lively debate. Thursday, March 17 at 7:00pm. Cost: $20. Christianne's Lyceum, 3696 8th Ave. W. Call 604.733.1356 or email lyceum@christiannehayward.com to register.
JORDAN SCOTT
Reading by the author of Silt and Blert. Friday, March 18 at 8:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive. More information at http://www.newstarbooks.com/news.php?news_id=40111.
BECKETT SOUNDINGS
Launch party for Inge Israel's new poetry collection. Also readings with Barbara Pelman and Pamela Porter. Sunday, March 20 at 5:00pm, free. Ardea Books & Art, 2025 4th Ave. W. More information at ronsdalepress.com.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Suzanne Buffam and Derek Lundy. Thursday, March 24 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
THREE POETS READING
New books of poetry presented by Cathy Ford, bill bissett and Mona Fertig. Saturday, April 9 at 3:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
ROBSON READING SERIES
Readings by Ryan Knighton and Ed Macdonald. Thursday, April 7 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Library/Bookstore at Robson Square, Plaza Level, 800 Robson St. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.
RAISE SHIT!
Come join Susan Boyd, Donald MacPherson and Bud Osborn discuss their book Raise Shit! Social Action Saving Lives, which explores the community activism in Vancouver's DTES that led to the opening of the first safe injection site. Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen room, lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street. For more information please contact VPL - Literature and Social Science at 604-331-3738.
NON-FICTION WRITING CONTEST
EVENT is both a literary journal showcasing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction and a sponsor of an annual non-fiction contest. The deadline for submissions to the 2011 EVENT Non-Fiction Contest is April 15, 2011. Three winners will each receive $500 (plus publication payment). Publication in EVENT 40/3 (December 2011). Submission details here: http://event.douglas.bc.ca.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL
The inaugural Vancouver International Poetry Festival will harness the diversity of spoken word in Canada and beyond to present a world-class spoken word festival that showcases the best that Canada has to offer, as well as exploring and expanding the boundaries of contemporary spoken word. April 18-23, 2011. For complete details, visit http://vancouverpoetryfestival.com.
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