Book News Vol. 6 No. 23

BOOK NEWS

Indian Summer Literature Series
Celebrating the 'Year of India in Canada', Indian Summer Festival presents top international talent from Canada and India across music, literature, dance, film, yoga and cuisine. Indian Summer's literature series features some of the most exciting authors and public intellectuals from India, Canada and the UK. Intimate, thought-provoking and truly international, the sessions feature fine minds in conversations about literature, language, politics, democracy, freedom of speech. Details: http://indiansummerfestival.ca/

SUNSHINE COAST FESTIVAL OF THE WRITTEN ARTS
Tickets are now on sale for the 29th Sunshine Coast Festival of the Written Arts, Canada's longest-running literary festival, taking place August 4-7, 2011 in beautiful downtown Sechelt. Call 1-800-565-9631 to order tickets. Information: www.writersfestival.ca.

AWARDS & LISTS

U.S. poet Gjertrud Schnackenberg and Canadian Dionne Brand each won the $75,000 prizes awarded by the Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry at its annual banquet in Toronto last week. Tacoma, Wash.-born Schnackenberg won the international Griffin Prize for Heavenly Questions; Toronto poet Brand was recognized for Ossuaries.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/schnackenberg-and-brand-win-75000-griffin-poetry-prizes/article2043891/

Novelist Louise Penny and veteran journalist Stevie Cameron are among the latest winners of the Arthur Ellis Awards, Canada's literary prize celebrating crime-writing excellence—Penny for Bury Your Dead and Cameron, On the Farm, Cameron's second book about B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton. The complete list is here:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/06/02/crime-writing-awards.html

Leonard Cohen has been named winner of Spain's Prince of Asturias Award for Letters, for "a body of literary work that has influenced three generations of people worldwide", and Bob Dylan has been nominated for an American book prize. Fans have long argued that the best rock music has literary merit: now it's becoming officially recognized.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/03/leonard-cohen-major-spanish-literary-prize

After 44 years in a Louisiana prison, Wilbert Rideau is campaigning for society to help prisoners start a new life. His own new life began with writing In the Place of Justice: A Story of Punishment and Deliverance, which has been shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger prize for Non-Fiction, a British literary award.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/may/31/wilbert-rideau-rehabilitate-prisoners

Julia Donaldson, the creator of the Gruffalo, has been named Children's Laureate. The two-year appointment marks a lifetime's contribution to children's literature and highlights the importance of children's books.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/07/gruffalo-julia-donaldson-new-children-s-laureate

NEWS & FEATURES

Signature Editions has named Vancouver author Genni Gunn their Author of the Month (June, 2011).
http://signature-editions.com/index.php/author_of_the_month/

Gunn's most recent novel Solaria is now available in Kindle format from Amazon.com, as well as in print from any bookstore. More details are available on the Signature website.
http://signatureeditions.com/index.php/books/single_title/solitaria/

Canadian Bookshelf offers the online opportunity to discover, discuss, and indulge in Canadian books.
http://canadianbookshelf.com/

The God of Small Things author Arundhati Roy has a vocal critic of the Indian state for the last decade. Stephen Moss interviews Roy about the issues and her latest book, Broken Republic.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/05/arundhati-roy-keep-destabilised-danger

Michael Cunningham discovered Virginia Woolf when he was a teenager and his discovery inspired him to write his novel about her life: what fun she was at parties, her periodic depressions, her adoration of the world, and his mother.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/04/virginia-woolf-the-hours-michael-cunningham.

Thessaly La Force interviews Francine Prose on her new novel My New American Life, on her research trip to Albania, and why she won't write nonfiction.
http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2011/05/13/francine-prose-on-my-new-american-life/

Megan Cox Gurden argues that contemporary fiction for teens is rife with explicit abuse, violence and depravity; she describes teen fiction as a hall of funhouse mirrors.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303657404576357622592697038.html?mod=WSJ_Books_LS_Books_6

Linda Holmes counters that what's distorted is the notion that kids don't know pathologies like suicide or abuse unless they read about them in books.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/06/06/137005354/seeing-teenagers-as-we-wish-they-were-the-debate-over-ya-fiction

“YA literature saves lives. Every. Single. Day," writes prize-winning YA novelist Laurie Halse Anderson.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/07/teen-fiction-accused

In an interview at the Royal Geographic Society last week, during which VS Naipaul provoked fury by suggesting that women writers are 'sentimental' and 'unequal to me', he also claimed that 'I read a piece of writing and within a paragraph or two I know whether it is by a woman or not.' Here is a chance to discover if this is a universal trait.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/quiz/2011/jun/02/naipaul-test-author-s-sex-quiz?CMP=EMCGT_030611&

Naipaul's attack on her just made Diana Athill laugh, she said.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/03/v-s-naipaul-diana-athill

Does reading great books make you a better person? A critic says Jane Austen taught him to be a more decent man, but the world is full of well-read jerks, writes Laura Miller.
http://www.salon.com/books/jane_austen/index.html?story=/books/laura_miller/2011/05/31/jane_austen_education

Aminatta Forna has put Sierra Leone on the literary map with The Memory of Love. Boyd Tonkin meets her on the eve of the Orange Prize for Fiction.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/aminatta-forna-my-country-had-a-war-it-would-be-extraordinary-not-to-want-to-write-about-that-2291536.html

Ann Patchett won huge acclaim for her bestselling novel Bel Canto, set in South America. She returns to deepest, darkest Amazonia in her new novel, State of Wonder. Arifa Akbar talks to her about the rainforest and everlasting fertility.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/ann-patchett-voyage-into-the-amazons-dark-heart-2292227.html

Tracy Sherlock talks to Zsuzsi Gartner about her latest collection of stories, Better Living Through Plastic Explosives, her feelings toward Vancouver, and her next project.
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Hilarity+with+splendid+whack+asperity/4893377/story.html

Few books have changed the literary landscape like Frederick Forsyth's political thriller, The Day of the Jackal. The Jackal has influenced a generation of thriller writers. This month marks the 40th anniversary of the novel's publication.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jun/03/day-jackal-frederick-forsyth

After languishing unpublished for almost 130 years, The Narrative of John Smith, Sherlock Holmes author's previously unpublished debut novel, is due out this autumn.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/06/lost-conan-doyle-novel-narrative-john-smith

Pablo Neruda, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971, may have been poisoned, an associate maintains. A Chilean judge has opened an investigation into the poet's 1973 death.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/06/was-nobel-prizewinning-poet-pablo-neruda-poisoned.html

Hans Keilson, described by Francine Prose in the New York Times as one of "the world's very greatest writers", has died, aged 101. He became an international literary sensation in his 100th year for The Death of the Adversary.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/07/hans-keilson-obituary

Designers Kai & Sunny created the covers for David Mitchell's novels Cloud Atlas and Number 9 Dream. In return, Mitchell wrote a short story to accompany their latest exhibition. Chris Moran reads The Gardener, over images from the exhibition.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/audioslideshow/2011/jun/06/davidmitchell

Faber takes TS Eliot into the 21st century, with the launch, of an iPad app of The Waste Land that includes a video performance of the poem, notes, commentary and readings from Viggo Mortensen, Ted Hughes, and Eliot himself.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/video/2011/jun/07/ipad-apple-the-wasteland-apps-video

BOOKS & WRITERS

The story of a dinner guest who refuses to leave develops into a satire on the way we live now in There but for the, Ali Smith's enjoyably playful new novel, writes Sarah Churchill.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/05/there-but-for-the-review

Adam Hochschild's To End All Wars is about the clash of world views and a world turned upside down, writes Jonathan Vance, from the turbulent years of social and political unrest before 1914 to more turbulent years after 1918.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/to-end-all-wars-by-adam-hochschild/article2046338/

Umberto Eco wrote his first novel, The Name of the Rose, in 1980; it was a runaway bestseller. In Confessions of a Young Novelist, Eco has decided to tell us what he believes the ingredients are for a successful novel.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-et-0602-book-20110602,0,5088721.story

Leila Ahmed was raised in Cairo by a generation of women who never wore the veil; why are more women now wearing the veil? In A Quiet Revolution, Ahmed addresses how and why these fluctuations of personal habit affected so many across the Muslim world.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/03/quiet-revolution-leila-ahmed-review

Sue Ellen is one of 13 chimpanzees profiled in Andrew Westoll's The Chimps of Fauna Sanctuary: A Canadian Story of Resilience and Recovery. Westoll weaves essential elements into a call to end chimpanzee abuse in medical labs, writes Kathryn Greenaway.
http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/books/Rescued+from+lives+pain+Andrew+Westoll+introduces+readers+chimps/4889618/story.html

Ai Weiwei's Blog, a collection of Ai Weiwei's blog entries proves he's much more than a playful dilettante of Chinese art. The People's Republic, he suggests, is like a runner surging ahead, but with a heart condition, writes Jonathan Fenby.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2011/jun/05/ai-weiwei-blog-review

In her new novel State of Wonder, Ann Patchett gives readers almost a feminized version of Heart of Darkness,' but without the savagery. Patchett creates a compelling mystery, writes Carolyn Kellogg.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/books/la-ca-ann-patchett-20110605,0,6081157.story

Carolyn Cooke's Daughters of the Revolution is a successful entwining of people that comes to signify the Big Moment of history. When does a revolution begin? The book is “so good you have to read it", says Susanna Sonnenberg.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/06/05/RVNQ1JNBPL.DTL

The Americans in Paris in Cynthia Ozick's Foreign Bodies are worthy of Henry James, writes Leyla Sanaii. Ozick has skillfully left certain questions open. The sense of doubt renders this intriguing story all the more mesmerising, says Sanaii.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/foreign-bodies-by-cynthia-ozick-2293021.html

The night before class, Haley Tanner wrote a novel's opening pages. The class and the professor hated it. Tanner kept writing. Mark Medley reports that The New York Times recently called Vaclav & Lena a “wonderful and wrenching debut novel."
http://arts.nationalpost.com/2011/06/03/for-her-first-trick-haley-tanner-discusses-her-magical-debut-novel-vaclav-lena/

Patrick Ness describes Chris Adrian as “the most magical novelist you've never heard of". One of the New Yorker's “20 Under 40", Adrian's latest, The Great Night, is a work of magic realism based on A Midsummer Night's Dream.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/02/great-night-chris-adrian-review

Sinya Queras finds that the work in Ken Babstock's Methodist Hatchet confirms that Babstock is one of the most exciting lyric poets writing today.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/methodist-hatchet-by-ken-babstock/article2046115/

Helon Habila writes that George Makana Clark's The Raw Man is an unforgettable epic of Zimbabwean history—and is not for the fainthearted. Yet once the reader has gone past the first page, the chances of putting down the book are small.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/04/raw-man-george-makana-clark-review

In The Quotable Hitchens—from Alcohol to Zionism: the Very Best of Christopher Hitchens, there are views on everything. He laments the dull, monochrome, righteous and boring. None of these epithets could be applied to him, says George Eaton.
http://www.newstatesman.com/books/2011/05/christopher-hitchens

Malicious Facebook exposures are at the heart of Live Wire, the latest thriller by Harlan Coben. An anonymous Facebook posting makes scurrilous claims about the paternity of an unborn child: inevitably, the chickens come home to roost, reports Barry Forshaw.
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/live-wire-by-harlan-coben-2293429.html

Les Murray, Australia's most honoured and internationally renowned poet, seems to have chosen to deepen his commitment to poetic and moral compassion and empathy, as evidenced by the best poems in Taller When Prone, writes Ken Babstock.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/books/taller-when-prone-by-les-murray/article2048895/

The spectral sense of Roberto Bolaño's unfulfilled promise makes him something akin to Latin America's David Foster Wallace, says Dwight Garner. The excellent thing about Between Parentheses is how thoroughly it dispels any incense or stale reverence in the air.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/08/books/roberto-bolanos-between-parentheses-review.html?ref=books

COMMUNITY EVENTS

OPENING DOORS
Join editors Daphne Marlatt and Carole Itter for the launch of the new book Opening Doors in Vancouver's East End: Strathcona. The editors will be on hand to answer questions and sign books. Thursday, June 9 at 7:00pm, free. People's Co-op Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Drive.

GENERATIONS
Editor Eury Chang hosts Ricepaper magazine's launch of its 16.1 spring issue. Includes readings and performances by Changming Yuan, Howie Tsui, Tetsuro Shigematsu, Larissa Lai, Ray Hsu, C.E. Gatchalian, and Sabrina Mehra Furminger. June 9 at 7:00pm. Tickets: $15. Rhizome Cafe, 317 E. Broadway. More information at www.ricepapermagazine.ca.

TRAVELING LIGHT
Canadian launch of author Lloyd Meeker's new book about a gay Vancouver shaman and his journey of self-discovery. Thursday, June 9 at 7:00pm, free. Little Sister's Book & Art Emporium, 1238 Davie St.

SHERYL SALLOUM
Launch of the author's new book The Life and Art of Mildred Valley Thornton. Thursday, June 9 at 8:00pm. Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street. More information at info@mothertonguepublishing.com.

IRSHAD MANJI
Canadian author and journalist discusses her new book Allah, Liberty, and Love. Friday, June 10 at 7:30pm. Tickets: $18/$15. Capilano Performing Arts Theatre, 2055 Purcell Way, North Vancouver. More information at www.capilanou.ca/theatre/.

GREEK POETRY READING
Manolis Aligizakis is going to talk about his translation of the works of renowned Greek poet, Yiannis Ritsos and about his book The Vernal Equinox. Saturday, June 11 at 3:00pm, free. Kitsilano Branch, VPL, 2425 Macdonald Street.

SAY WHA?!
Sara Bynoe hosts a comedy show that highlights readings of deliciously rotten writing. Readers include Darren Williams, Tom Hill, Lauren McGibbon, Ivan Decker, Ken Hegan, Sam Mullins, Peter New, and Taz Vanrassel. Wednesday, June 15 at 8:00pm. Tickets: $10/$5 at the door. Cottage Bistro, 4470 Main Street. More information at sarabynoe.com/shows/say-wha/.

WORDPLAY
WordPlay is a program of Vancouver Poetry House that sends poets to classrooms to perform spoken word poetry and to run workshops. This year marks the debut of Summer Youth Slam Camp (July 4 to 8) at Little Mountain Gallery. Fifteen youth poets will work with Vancouver's best slam poets in this spoken word intensive. The deadline for registration for Slam Camp is June 15. For more details, go to vancouverpoetryhouse.com.

SMOKE SIGNALS
A screening of the award-winning film based on the work of Sherman Alexie. Thursday, June 16 at 7:00pm, free. Alice MacKay room. lower level, Central Library, 350 W. Georgia Street.

KEVIN MCNEILLY
Reading by the author of Embouchure, his debut poetry collection. Thursday, June 16 at 7:00pm, free. UBC Bookstore Robson Square, plaza level, 800 Robson Street. More information at www.robsonreadingseries.ubc.ca.

TIMES OUT OF JOINT
Simon Fraser University's 11th annual English Graduate Conference will be held from Thursday, June 16 to Saturday, June 18 at SFU's Harbour Centre (Thursday and Friday) and the Segal Graduate School of Business (Saturday). All events are open to the general public. There is no fee for attendance. For more information check the website: www.sfu.ca/~gradconf/.

HARRY MOURATIDIS
Join Vancouver author as he reads from his latest book, They Live Longer: The Secrets of Healthy and Active Ninety-Year-Olds. Saturday, June 18 at 3:00pm, free. Kitsilano Branch, 2425 Macdonald Street.

BETTY KRAWCZYK
Book launch for the author's new book, This Dangerous Place: My Journey Between the Passions of the Living and the Dead. Sunday, June 19 at 3:00pm. Reading, book signing, and refreshments to be served. Galiano Island Books (76 Madrona Drive, Galiano Island, 250-539-3340).

Upcoming

JOAN THOMAS
Award-winning novelist Joan Thomas reads from her love story, Curiosity. Tuesday, June 21 at 7:00pm, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Library. 350 W. Georgia St.

THE WRITERS CARAVAN
Thursdays Writing Collective is hosting an evening celebration and reading for the culmination of its pilot project: The Writers Caravan. Tuesday, June 21 at 7:00pm. Roundhouse, 81 Roundhouse Mews (Davie and Pacific). Find The Writers Caravan on facebook and online at: Thursdayspoems.wordpress.com.

READING
Yvonne Blomer, Cynthia Woodman Kerkham, and Anne McDonald launch new poetry and fiction. Tuesday, June 21 at 7:30pm, free. Cafe Montmartre, 4362 Main Street. More information at yblomer@shaw.ca.

OF MAMMOTHS AND MEN
Sharon Levy, author of the new book Once and Future Giants, explores the causes of the mass extinction of mammoths and the reasons why this ancient story is vitally important here and now. Wednesday, July 6 at 7:00pm, free. Alice MacKay room. lower level, 350 W. Georgia St. For more information please contact Vancouver Public Library at 604-331-3603.

VPL SUMMER BOOK SALE
Lots of great fiction for summer reading plus some DVDs, childrens, travel, gardening and multilingual items will be available. Admission ends 30 minutes before sale closes. All sales final. Prices .75 to 2.50. Cash and carry. Thursday, July 7 at 10:00am, free. Alma VanDusen & Peter Kaye rooms, lower level, Central Branch, 350 W. Georgia St.

WRITE ON BOWEN 2011
Join writers from all over the Lower Mainland for a series of intensive, interactive writing workshops, panel presentations, and other events. July 8 to 11, Artisan Square, Bowen Island. For complete details, visit www.writeonbowen.com.

HAIKU NORTH AMERICA
A long weekend of papers, presentations, workshops, readings, and other activities in celebration of haiku poetry, held at the Seattle Center, at the foot of the Space Needle. Featured presenters include Cor van den Heuvel, Richard Gilbert, David Lanoue, Carlos Colón, Fay Aoyagi, Jim Kacian, Emiko Miyashita, George Swede, and many others. August 3-7, 2011. For more information, visit www.haikunorthamerica.com.